JOHANNESBURG – The Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg sentenced three Zimbabwean nationals to four life terms each for their roles in a human trafficking scheme involving the attempted smuggling of four orphaned children out of South Africa to Ireland, using fraudulent documentation. Hilda Tenenga, Sthembiso Mlauzi, and Kumburai Andrew Masimo, were each sentenced on Thursday 30 April. Each received an additional 15 years for possession of fraudulent documents, 12 years for fraud, and two years for contravening the Immigration Act, as they were in South Africa illegally.
The case stems from arrests at the O.R. Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg on 1 August 2022, following the interception of Tenenga, who was found attempting to travel with four minor children using fraudulent travel documentation. Further investigations led to the arrest of the two men, Mlauzi and Masimo.
The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) of South Africa welcomed the sentences handed down. Magaboke Mohlatlole, spokesperson for the NPA’s Gauteng division in Johannesburg, said the trio had been remanded in custody until the finalisation of the trial. He said the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) successfully opposed the accused’s bail application, which had initially been granted.
“The accused were initially granted bail following their arrest, but senior State Advocate Makwena Mokwatedi successfully applied for the revocation of bail after the matter was transferred to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions,” said Mohlatlole.
He said the sentencing was a result of in-depth investigations led by WO Claas Ranthakgoa, which revealed that the accused had utilised fraudulent documents as part of a scheme to traffic the children out of South Africa to Ireland.
Mohlatlole said that, arising from the investigations, Adv. Mokwatedi presented a strong case against the accused during sentencing proceedings. “He submitted that the accused had exploited the extreme vulnerability of the minor children, who were orphans, and had abused their status as foreign nationals residing in South Africa,” he said. He said a full-scale investigation revealed the two men had posed as family members of the children in order to facilitate their unlawful movement across international borders.
Mohlatlole said Acting Judge Thembi Bokako had ordered that the sentences on the remaining counts — 12 years for fraud, 15 years for possession of fraudulent documents, and two years’ imprisonment for contravening the Immigration Act — run concurrently with the life sentences.
“This resulted in an effective sentence of life imprisonment for each accused. The NPA welcomes the sentence as a strong affirmation of South Africa’s commitment to combating human trafficking and protecting vulnerable children from exploitation,” he said.
