South African man allegedly m8rders girlfriend, stuffs her body inside suitcase and buries it in shallow grave

A South African man accused of m8rdering his 23-year-old girlfriend, Zinhle Mchunu, is set to apply for bail in late January 2026.

This follows his initial, brief appearance at the Umlazi Magistrates Court on Monday, December 22, 2025...TAP TO CONTINUE FULL READING.

22-year-old Themba Xaba allegedly k!lled Mchunu, a University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) student from Ladysmith who was due to graduate next year.

He is accused of putting her body into a suitcase and burying it at the Umlazi where he was renting.

Mchunu’s body was discovered after about a month of being reported missing.

The alarm was first raised on November 22 when Mchunu’s sister, who lives in Gauteng, received a call from Xaba.

A family member, who requested anonymity, recounted that Xaba told the sister he had fought with Zinhle, resulting in her packing three pairs of pants in her suitcase and leaving late at night. Xaba claimed he did not follow her and assumed she had gone to her ex-boyfriend’s residence.

The family found this explanation suspicious and decided to travel to Durban around November 24 to meet Xaba at the police station for an explanation.

However, as they were en route, Xaba left Durban and went to his home in Ladysmith.

The family member also revealed that Xaba was found in possession of Mchunu’s bank card and cellphones, and that November WhatsApp conversations had been deleted.

Mchunu’s friends had already reported her missing and alerted the family and police to text messages where Xaba reportedly asked his landlord for tools to dig the ground.

“We arrived in Durban and went to the police station where we introduced ourselves as the parents,” the family member said.

“We were taken to where Xaba resided, and the place was searched for any clue, but nothing was found.”

While searching the yard, the family noticed a destroyed wall but didn’t see anything else.

“When questioned about the tools, Xaba claimed he needed them to burn rubbish. “We saw where he had burnt stuff, but no one thought of digging further,” she added.

With days passing and Mchunu still missing without updates from the police, the family decided to hire a private investigator, who began providing them with updates.

The situation changed dramatically on December 19, when the family received a late-night call from the police telling them not to sleep as they were on their way to Ladysmith with an update.

“When the detective arrived, he asked for water, and at that time I felt nervous, and they had asked for her ID,” the family member recalled.

After drinking water, the detective explained that they had driven to Bergville and picked up Xaba. Initially, while driving him to Durban, Xaba denied any knowledge of Mchunu’s whereabouts or her d3ath. He spent a night in the cells, but on the following day, he asked to speak to the detective. Xaba then confessed to k!lling Mchunu, putting her body into her suitcase, and burying her.

“I’m assuming that he only spoke because they were now going to search the residence he rented with the dogs,” the family member speculated.

During his court appearance on Monday, Xaba reportedly sent a message through his mother, expressing his sorrow and claiming the k!lling was a mistake.

“He is going to appear again on January 26, and he intends to apply for bail,” the family member stated.

The family is currently awaiting DNA results to proceed with funeral arrangements. Mchunu also left her three-year-old daughter, who is said to be constantly asking about her mom.

The incident was confirmed by KZN police spokesperson, Constable Thenjiswa Ngcobo.

“The suspect appeared before Umlazi Magistrates Court on December 22, 2025,” Ngcobo said.

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