Nyoka murder trial: NPA to study judgment acquitting apartheid cop, convicting two others

The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said it will be studying the High Court judgment that acquitted an apartheid police officer and convicted two others for the murder of student activist Caiphus Nyoka.

Judge Mohamed Ismail handed down judgement on Tuesday in the trial of Nyoka's 1987 murder.

The anti-apartheid activist was assassinated by apartheid police in his Daveyton home.

ALSO READ: Caiphus Nyoka's siblings welcome guilty verdict for apartheid era police officers

Major Leon van den Berg and sergeants Abraham Engelbrecht and Pieter Stander were tried for the murder.

While the court convicted Engelbrecht and Stander, it found that the State failed to prove van den Berg’s involvement beyond reasonable doubt.

While the NPA has welcomed the judgement by the Johannesburg High Court that found that apartheid police were behind Nyoka’ murder 38 years later, the acquittal of van den Berg is a small loss for the State.

Prosecutors argued that van den Berg, who was the senior officer, ordered the raid on Nyoka’s house, which resulted in his murder.

But Judge Mohamed Ismail was not convinced.

“It [the State] also failed to prove that accused 1 acted with common purpose with the others to kill the deceased.”

The NPA’s Lumka Mahajana said that they will be studying this judgement before deciding on a way forward.

Meanwhile, Engelbrecht and Stander have applied for bail, pending their sentencing.

Their bail application has been postponed to 2026.