Gabisile Shabane: child killed for muti (life terms)

Cited record

Sources

TimesLIVE (2021) 'Life sentences for trio who murdered child with albinism for muti', TimesLIVE (South Africa), 28 October. Available at: timeslive.co.za (Accessed: 14 July 2026).

The muti trade — the killing of people for body parts used in traditional 'medicine' — is one of the most heavily litigated forms of ritual crime in the world, and South Africa's courts document it in detail. Three people received life for the murder of 13-year-old Gabisile Shabane, who had albinism: they 'kidnapped Gabisile with the plan to kill her and harvest her body parts for muti they wanted to use to make potions they believed would make them rich. They were arrested just weeks after the kidnapping and killings. Gabisile's remains were found in a shallow grave in Cullinan.'

TimesLIVE (2019) 'Double life sentence for teacher who killed teen with albinism for muti', TimesLIVE (South Africa), 23 August. Available at: timeslive.co.za (Accessed: 14 July 2026).

A schoolteacher, Themba Thubane, received a double life sentence in the same case: 'Her killing was muti-related. The group kidnapped Gabisile Shabane, 13, and her 15-month-old cousin Nkosikhona Ngwenya. Both children were then killed and Gabisile's body was later found with body parts missing. The children had suffered a gruesome death at the hands of unscrupulous men who were blinded by greed and the love of money.'