Lenasia nurse and gardener found guilty in R6m insurance scam murder

A Lenasia nurse and her former gardener have been convicted of murder in a scheme to profit from life and funeral policies worth about R6 million. The Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg delivered the verdicts on Thursday.

Who was convicted and for what

The court found 47-year-old nurse Happiness Sithembile Xulu and 38-year-old former gardener Simon Isaac Mogale guilty of the murder of domestic worker Busisiwe Nxumalo, who was Xulu’s stepdaughter. Xulu was also convicted on four counts of fraud after pleading guilty to unlawfully taking out life and funeral insurance policies in Nxumalo’s name while impersonating her.

How the fraud and murder unfolded

Prosecutors said that shortly after Nxumalo moved from KwaZulu-Natal to live with Xulu in Johannesburg in September 2021, multiple life and funeral policies were obtained in Nxumalo’s name from various insurers with a combined value of approximately R6 million. The court heard that Xulu nominated herself as the sole beneficiary on all the policies.

Four months later, on 17 January 2022, Nxumalo was murdered. The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Magaboke Mohlatlole told the court that Xulu and Mogale had a longstanding relationship, with Mogale having previously worked as Xulu’s gardener and residing in one of her shacks in exchange for performing gardening duties.

Confession, corroboration and findings

Mogale’s conviction rested on a confession admitted by the court after rejecting his claim that it had been obtained under duress. In that confession, Mogale said Xulu transported him to a veld near Daxina Hospital, gave him a knife and convinced him to kill Nxumalo in return for R60 000. Mohlatlole said the court found Mogale acted on Xulu’s instructions and caused the death of the deceased.

“His confession was supported by corroborating circumstantial evidence, which the court found proved his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt,” Mohlatlole stated.

Although there was no direct eyewitness testimony linking Xulu to the killing, the court concluded that the cumulative circumstantial evidence pointed to her involvement. Senior State Advocate Leswikane Mashabela told the court that the only reasonable inference was that Xulu orchestrated the murder to benefit from the insurance policies she had fraudulently obtained. The court convicted Xulu of murder, finding that the totality of the evidence established her guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

Next steps and reaction

The matter was postponed to 8 June for sentencing proceedings.

“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,” Mohlatlole stated.

Mohlatlole added that the successful prosecution underscores the criminal justice system’s commitment to ensuring accountability for those who, in her words,

“exploit positions of trust and orchestrate violent crimes for personal enrichment”.