On Friday the Gauteng High Court sentenced Dumisani Mkhwanazi who murdered the University of Johannesburg student Palesa Madiba in August 2013 to 31 years in prison. 

 Madiba went missing in 2013 when she went to have a sleepover at her friend's place Matshidiso Makhwanazi who is the perpetrator's niece. After her family went on her hunt for Madiba as well as police investigations.  Her body was found two years later in a shallow grave outside Mkhwanazi's house in Soweto. Mkhwanazi lived in a back room of the property owned by his family. 

According to the South African Matshidiso Mkhwanazi was the first state witness in the trial. She told the court that she last saw Palesa at her home on August 12 when she left for work.

“My grandmother woke up first on that day and prepared to go to work, I then woke up after her to prepare for work as well, while I was preparing, Palesa was in bed in her pajamas and we were just chatting,” Mkhwanazi said.

Palesa had classes on that day at UJ and was to leave later. Mkhwanazi, who left earlier, said she had told her (Palesa) to leave the keys to the main house in the garden.

She said she had failed to reach Madiba on her on her phone the whole day but failed to do so as it was on voicemail.

“When I arrived from work at 7 pm that day I found my grandmother at home and told her that I have been trying to call Palesa the whole day and Dumisani Mkhwanazi who later arrived at home said he has seen Palesa leave in the morning, he even described how she was dressed,” she said. 

Madiba's remains are said to have been discovered by a neighbour who noticed  Madiba's hand sticking out from the shallow grave.