The man was found guilty of the murders of five people in April 2023.
A 29-year-old convicted murderer has been sentenced to five terms of life imprisonment for the murders of five people in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).
Deon Chonco Mathonsi appeared in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Monday, where the sentence was handed down.
Guilty
Mathonsi was found guilty of the murders of the five people in April 2023.
Police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said the court also sentenced Mathonsi to an additional 15 years in prison for his guilty verdict on a charge of robbery with aggravating circumstances.
“On the evening of 8 April 2023, Mathonsi and his two accomplices stormed into a homestead at Gobhogobho location in Bulwer and shot five men. Four of them were declared dead at the scene, and the fifth one succumbed to his injuries in the hospital.”
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Arrest
Netshiunda said Mathonsi and his crew also robbed the women who were there of an undisclosed amount of money before fleeing from the scene.
“The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Murder and Robbery Unit detectives combed the scene for clues, and the search for the suspects began.
“Mathonsi was traced and arrested a little later on, and since his arrest, investigators successfully opposed his several bail applications until Monday, 26 January 2026, when he was sentenced,” Netshiunda said.
Netshiunda said the court also declared Mathonsi unfit to possess a firearm.
Manhunt
Meanwhile, police have launched a manhunt for an awaiting-trial prisoner who escaped from lawful custody at a prison in Limpopo.
It is understood that the prisoner escaped from the Tzaneen Saps on Friday, 24 January 2026, at approximately 11am.
Escape
Police spokesperson Colonel Malesela Ledwaba said officers have intensified their search to trace the prisoner.
“The suspect, Leonard Letswalo (20), was arrested on Thursday, 22 January 2026, for unlawful possession of ammunition. He allegedly escaped while being charged within the police station premises.
“The suspect fled the scene on foot and could not be located despite immediate tracing efforts conducted around Tzaneen CBD, Ritavi River, and Lephephane Village. At the time of escape, the suspect was still handcuffed, with the handcuffs locked to the front,” Ledwaba said.
Ledwaba urged the public not approach the escapee.
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