Thabo Bester and Dr Nandipha Magudumana often met in prison for sex
Dr Nandipha Magudumana and convicted rapist and murderer, Thabo Bester, had romp sessions – at the Mangaung Correctional Centre in the Free State. According to Sunday Independent, Bester and Magudumana were allowed to spend several hours together inside the prison, despite conjugal visits not being allowed in South Africa.
The publication has cited sources who said Bester was able to bribe prison officials.
“This started when Magudumana started seeing Bester in jail in 2017. Bester had a lot of money, and he would just pay the officials, so they gave him a room to spend (time) with Magudumana. He would spend hours with her,” the sources said.
The prison Department spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo said conjugal visits were not allowed in South Africa.
The department’s confirmation came after sources told The Sunday Independent that Bester had been allowed to spend hours with Magudumana inside the prison.
“We are aware of the allegations, and they are being investigated. Inmates are not afforded conjugal (visits) in South Africa,” Nxumalo said.
Another source confirmed the allegations, saying Bester had a nice life in jail.
“Those allegations are true. This is something that was happening. His lifestyle in jail was different to everyone (else’s) because he was not even eating our food in prison. Prisoners who were studying were not allowed to charge their laptops in the cells, but he was allowed (to do this).”
“Everything would change in a second when it came to him. He had an extension cord connected to his cell. I believe this is because he had money, or maybe they knew something we don’t know,” the source said.
Another inmate said the alleged preferential treatment afforded to Bester had been reported to the authorities previously, but nothing had been done.
According to media reports, Magudumana and Bester have allegedly known each other since 2006, when she was still studying at Wits University. They lost contact in 2011 after Magudumana was married and Bester was imprisoned on sexual assault and murder charges.
However, Magudumana started visiting Bester around 2017, and the pair rekindled their relationship.
G4S also confirmed to the justice and correctional services portfolio committee in Parliament that Magudumana had been a frequent visitor to the prison and started seeing Bester at the facility as early as 2017.
Last month, The Sunday Independent reported that G4S officials also used to help Bester to sneak out of the facility so that he could spend cosy nights with Magudumana in a five-star hotel in Ballito, KwaZulu-Natal, with this happening just days before Bester made his escape in May 2022.
