KEY POINTS
- A Limpopo security guard received life imprisonment for murdering his girlfriend with his company-issued firearm after deceitfully checking out the weapon during his 2021 shift.
- The case revealed critical gaps in firearm control protocols, prompting police to implement biometric tracking systems for private security weapons.
- While investigators were praised for securing conviction, the victim’s family is suing the security firm for negligence as gender violence activists highlight rising intimate partner murders in the province.
The Tzaneen Regional Court has handed down a life sentence to Golden Mbalati, a 50-year-old security guard who murdered his 51-year-old girlfriend using his employer’s service weapon in a premeditated attack three years ago.
The brutal killing has raised urgent questions about firearm management protocols in South Africa’s private security industry.
According to police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Stephen Thakeng, Mbalati was on duty at a Bellview clinic on February 3, 2021, when he illegally checked out his company-issued firearm under false pretenses. “He abandoned his post, traveled to their home in Bolobedu, and lured the victim to a secluded area under the guise of picking fruit,” Thakeng revealed.
Forensic evidence showed the victim sustained multiple close-range gunshot wounds to the upper body before Mbalati fled, leaving the murder weapon at the scene.
System failures and a relentless pursuit of justice
The case exposed alarming security lapses, as Mbalati’s unauthorized firearm removal went unchallenged for hours until colleagues reported his disappearance. Meanwhile, the victim’s teenage son discovered his mother’s bleeding body after growing suspicious of Mbalati’s lone return. “The child’s trauma is unimaginable – finding his mother executed in such a manner,” said gender violence activist Nomsa Khumalo, noting this adds to Limpopo’s 38% spike in intimate partner murders last year.
Detective Constable Lerato Rampedi’s two-year investigation overcame critical hurdles, including Mbalati’s temporary 2023 release before final conviction. “This was textbook gender-based violence – a man weaponizing his professional access against a vulnerable partner,” said National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Mashudu Malabi.
The sentencing coincides with Parliament’s review of the Private Security Industry Regulation Act, which currently allows 480,000 security officers to carry firearms with minimal oversight.
Limpopo Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe hailed Rampedi’s “exceptional detective work” while announcing new provincial guidelines requiring biometric firearm tracking for all private security arsenals. The victim’s family, though relieved by the verdict, has initiated civil action against the security company for negligence. “No sentence returns our mother, but we pray this forces change so no family endures this nightmare again,” read a family statement provided to IOL.
