Sithembile Xulu and Simon Mogale appeared briefly in the Lenasia Magistrates Court, facing charges of murder and fraud. Photo by Ntwaagae Seleka/News24
A FORMER nurse and her gardener have been convicted of murdering her stepdaughter in a chilling plot to cash in on insurance policies worth about R6 million.
The Joburg High Court found Hapiness Sithembile Xulu (47) and Simon Isaac Mogale (38) guilty of the murder of Busisiwe Nxumalo, Xulu’s stepdaughter.
Insurance policies at the centre
Xulu was also convicted on four counts of fraud after admitting she unlawfully took out life and funeral insurance policies in Nxumalo’s name under false pretenses.
According to the court, shortly after Nxumalo moved from KZN to live with Xulu in Joburg in September 2021, Xulu fraudulently secured several life and funeral insurance policies from different insurance companies with a combined value of about R6 million.
She listed herself as the sole beneficiary on all the policies.
Four months later, on 17 January 2022, Nxumalo was murdered.
Gardener’s confession
The court heard that Mogale had a long-standing relationship with Xulu, having worked as her gardener and lived in one of her shacks in exchange for gardening services.
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Mogale’s conviction was based largely on a confession that the court ruled was admissible after rejecting his claims that it had been made under duress.
In the confession, Mogale said Xulu drove him to a veld near Daxina Hospital where Nxumalo was lying on the ground.
“He further stated that Xulu handed him a knife, instructed him to kill Nxumalo, and promised to pay him R60 000 for carrying out the murder,” the court heard.
The court found that Mogale acted on Xulu’s instructions and caused Nxumalo’s death.
Mastermind behind the murder
Although no eyewitness directly linked Xulu to the killing, the court found that circumstantial evidence overwhelmingly pointed to her role as the mastermind behind the murder.
Senior State Advocate Leswikane Mashabela argued that the only reasonable conclusion from the evidence was that Xulu arranged the murder to benefit financially from the insurance policies she had fraudulently taken out.
The court agreed and convicted her of murder.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesman Magaboke Mohlatlole welcomed the outcome.
“The NPA welcomes the convictions, which demonstrate the effectiveness of meticulous investigation and prosecution in uncovering and dismantling complex crimes motivated by greed and financial gain,” he said.
“The successful prosecution underscores the criminal justice system’s commitment to ensuring accountability for those who exploit positions of trust and orchestrate violent crimes for personal enrichment.”
The matter has been postponed to 8 June 2026 for sentencing proceedings.
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