EC Liquor Bord wants harsh prison sentence for Enyobeni tavern owners

EAST LONDON - The Eastern Cape Liquor Board said the owners of a tavern where 21 youngsters died should be slapped with a harsh prison sentence.

Enyobeni tavern owners, Siyakhangela and Vuyokazi Ndevu, were found guilty on Wednesday by the East London Regional Court of selling liquor to minors.

The 21 young people, with the youngest being 13-years-old, were found dead on the floors of the tavern in 2021 after a night of celebrating the end of mid-year exams.

A formal inquest into their deaths is still expected to take place.

The Eastern Cape Liquor Board said it welcomed the judgment, with the court finding that the owners did not take all the necessary precautions to ensure that all occupants at the establishment were of legal age to drink.

As the couple is expected to return to court for sentencing on Friday, the liquor board's spokesperson, Mgwebi Msiya, said they’re looking forward to a hefty sentence.

"So that this will act as a deterrent to other liquor traders who continue to flout and violate their trading conditions."