Cape Town — Several individuals alleged to have helped convicted Facebook rapist and murderer Thabo Bester escape from the Mangaung maximum‑security prison will now face legal scrutiny. News24 reports that the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) will investigate Dr Nandipha Magudumana, who is said to have been Bester’s lover, to determine whether she acted unprofessionally. An HPCSA spokesperson said, “Doctors sign a code of conduct and code of practice. We will look at all her actions to determine if any professional conduct was breached in light of all allegations against her.”
The investigation follows claims by celebrity doctor Mmereka Ntshani that Magudumana assumed her identity after fleeing the country with Bester. Both Magudumana and Bester were apprehended in Tanzania, along with a Mozambican national. A former official of security firm G4S, Senohe Matsoara—identified as an alleged accomplice—was arrested together with Magudumana’s father; their case has been postponed, according to eNCA. IOL reports that Matsoara allegedly ignored calls about a fire in Bester’s cell at the Mangaung Correctional Centre in Bloemfontein.
During a parliamentary portfolio committee hearing on justice and correctional services, G4S regional commercial director Cobus Groenewoud said multiple incidents leading up to Bester’s escape have been recorded and are under investigation. Times Live notes that police expect further arrests. Recent details of the escape include a video from last month showing Magudumana at a Johannesburg restaurant with three men identified as a private investigator, a debt collector and a car‑dealership representative. In the footage, Magudumana is told she has failed to make payments on a R1.35 million Mercedes‑Benz purchased in 2022. The luxury vehicle, which she drove through the Beitbridge border post, is believed to have been a getaway car in Zimbabwe should they need to flee South Africa.
Social‑media posts by former G4S prison guard Senohe Matsoara, made several months before Bester’s escape, show him enjoying lavish dinners, purchasing a Volkswagen T‑Roc R‑Line worth R650 000, and receiving spa treatments with his partner, according to Times Live. Matsoara now faces charges of murder, arson, fraud and defeating the ends of justice, as both he and Magudumana’s father are accused of killing an unknown man in or around Bloemfontein and using the corpse to facilitate Bester’s escape.
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