Zimbabwean woman convicted over children's poisoning deaths

A 43-year-old Zimbabwean woman has been convicted by the National Prosecuting Authority in the Johannesburg Magistrates' Court for the murder of her two young children after poisoning them at a public park in 2023.

Lister Nkomo was found guilty on two counts of murder relating to the deaths of her two-year-old daughter and seven-month-old son, who died at Empire Park in Parktown, Johannesburg, on June 3, 2023.

According to evidence presented during the trial, Nkomo contacted her sister on the day of the incident and indicated that she was in trouble and intended to kill herself together with the children.

Concerned by the call, the sister alerted their father, who rushed to the park and found both children lying motionless. Emergency medical personnel later declared them dead at the scene.

Nkomo was also discovered unconscious after allegedly consuming poison herself. She was taken to hospital where she recovered under police guard and suicide watch before being formally arrested.

Post-mortem examinations later confirmed that both children died from poisoning. During the trial, a State forensic analyst testified that the poison administered was capable of causing death in humans.

Nkomo did not testify in her defence during the proceedings. Acting regional court prosecutor Terry Hlongwane argued that the evidence overwhelmingly showed that she had administered the poison to the children.

In delivering judgment, the magistrate ruled that, in the absence of any explanation from the accused, the only reasonable inference was that she poisoned the children.

The matter was postponed to May 2026 for the preparation of a pre-sentence report ahead of sentencing proceedings.