A Gauteng pastor who allegedly murdered his sister-in-law two weeks after his wife’s death is on the run after failing to show up in court to stand trial.
Pastor Kennedy Bonginkosi Mndau of the Apolostic Kingdom Hub in Heidelberg failed to appear in the Pretoria high court sitting at Benoni magistrate’s court last week for the murder of Bongiwe Skhosana.
A warrant for his arrest has since been issued.
Mndau’s co-accused is his stepdaughter, 23-year-old Hope Skhosana, the daughter of his late wife Phumelele. Hope is Bongiwe’s niece.
Both Mndau, 43, and Hope face charges of house robbery, kidnapping, carjacking and murder.
On June 11 2023, three suspects entered Bongiwe’s home and ransacked the house when they did not find her.
According to a source, a few days later, Hope told the very same people who ransacked Bongiwe’s house that she was home.
“The suspects then kidnapped Bongiwe and, according to them, they took her to a veld where they met with Mndau.
“They also alleged that Mndau wanted them to kill her and that is when a fight broke out. The three guys allege that they left the scene, and at the time, Bongiwe was still alive,” the source told Sowetan
The three suspects were later arrested through fingerprints they had left on Bongiwe’s car. In November 2025, they confessed and entered into a plea bargain with the state. They were later each sentenced to eight years for robbery and kidnapping.
Subsequently, Mndau and Hope were served with summons to appear before the Heidelberg magistrate’s court, where they were formally charged with murder and kidnapping.
On June 8, they were expected to appear for trial but Mndau did not show up. At the time, he was out on free bail.
Magistrate Cornelius Van der Westhuizen has since postponed the case to January to allow police time to find Mndau.
Bongiwe’s family said they are disappointed that Mndau ran away from accountability.
Speaking to Sowetan, her brother, Thokozani Skhosana said Mndau’s disappearance was hindering them from discovering the truth on whether their niece was part of the plan to kill Bongiwe or she was manipulated.
We were shocked [that Mndau is the accused] because we saw our sister, and you could tell that she was tortured to death or beaten to death.
— Thokozani Skhosana, deceased’s brother
“We were shocked [that Mndau is the accused] because we saw our sister, and you could tell that she was tortured to death or beaten to death,” he said.
“We are actually disappointed that he has now run away because we wanted to find out [through court proceedings] what did [Bongiwe] do for him to kill her like that brutally. More than that, he claimed to be a pastor but has managed to do such a thing. No, he must be found and explain to us what really happened.”
Skhosana said Bongiwe was killed two weeks after they had buried their other sister, Phumelele Mndau, who was married to Mndau.
Speaking about the family’s relationship with Mndau, Skhosana said while it was civil, there has been conflict at times.
“I just don’t remember the year but there was a time when there was a confrontation between my parents and my sister Phumelele.
“My sister and Mndau had financial crises, and my parents had offered to help with a place to stay. Mndau refused and said that he will not stay at his in-laws’ place as a man.
“He then influenced my sister to believe that my parents do not love him,” Skhosana said. He added that for some time, the couple was not speaking to his parents due to Mndau’s allegations.
After Phumelele’s death, he said his parents offered Mndau a place to stay. However, on the day they had agreed to pick him up, he changed his mind and said that someone had offered to help him.
Police spokesperson Col Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi requested anyone who may have information on the whereabouts of Mndau to contact Col Hlongwane of Heidelberg detectives on 082-319-9378 or the Crime Stop Line at 08600-10111.
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