WARNING: This story is graphic and contains distressing details of murder and suicide. Reader’s discretion is advised.

Simphiwe Jennifer & Nelisiwe Skhosana

Bundu– A devastating tragedy has left the Bundu community and family relatives shattered after husband Jacob Ngele — apparently out of jealousy — opted to strangle his wife Lucia Thembisile Mashiyane (32) and poisoned two sons Bokamoso (7) and Karabo (4) Ngele.

According to family members, the incident is believed to have been triggered by jealousy after Mashiyane received a promotion at work, which allegedly created tension in the marriage. The family said Ngele, who had mounting debts, struggled to accept his wife’s growing independence.

On the afternoon of 23 October 2025, the couple and their two sons were en route to visit an aunt. It is believed that the couple had been quarrelling while en route and it appears Ngele might have dropped the children somewhere, before driving off with his wife, where he eventually killed her by asphyxiation and dragged her to the car boot. When he was done, he went back to fetch the children and continued with their destination to the aunt’s.

Upon arrival, the aunt recalls that Ngele had bought alcohol bottles, even though he was not known to frequent such beverages.

The aunt asked Ngele where his wife was and he told her that she was at work. The next day, on 24 October 2025, the aunt said Ngele chillingly confessed that he killed his wife on the afternoon of 23 October and she was in the car boot all night.

He confessed that he also killed the children while driving back to their home. He bought them food and the children unknowingly consumed poison in the process.

He subsequently drove to one of the nearby bushes at Zithabiseni, where he set the vehicle alight, along with his wife’s and children’s bodies inside.

Ngele then walked back home, where he, too, consumed poison and died. While he was walking back home, he sent relatives and friends a message that read: “If you want Thembi and the kids, you will find them at Zithabiseni.”

A family friend, Johannes Mahamba, said Ngele had accumulated debts from loan sharks, which placed further strain on the marriage.

He said Mashiyane once used all her savings to pay Ngele’s debts. “We noticed he had serious financial struggles. His car was even repossessed by those loan sharks. When his wife got a promotion at work and stopped depending too much on him and handled all the financial duties on his behalf, that’s when he started feeling small as a man,” claimed Mahamba. “I feared he might harm himself one day… but not his wife and children.”

He added that Ngele contacted him on the day of the killings: “He told me to check WhatsApp because he sent something. But I no longer had the App. Minutes later his phone was off. I was shocked to learn what he had done.”

Mashiyane’s heartbroken mother, Thandi Skosana, described her daughter as a quiet, humble woman who never liked crowds and preferred spending time with family.

“She was my first born out of four children. She was so reserved and gentle. Sometimes I even got worried about how lonely she was growing up, but she was a loving child,” Skosana shared tearfully.

Their sons, Bokamoso and Karabo, were known at school for their love of soccer. “Even at school they are still crying for them. They were their soccer champions,” Skosana says she will always remember her daughter’s love for baking, a hobby that brought them closer.

Family members said the couple — who got married in 2024— appeared happy and, at first there were no visible signs of serious conflict.

The Mashiyane family says they are struggling to come to terms with the loss. “She loved her family. She was humble. She did everything right. We still don’t understand why he chose to do this.”