Action Society welcomes the ruling confirming that convicted murderer Xolani Du Preez must serve the full additional eight-year prison sentence imposed for the brutal murder of Suritha Alting.
Suritha Alting was attacked while walking home from Bossa near her home in De Zicht during the early hours of a Saturday morning in November 2022. Du Preez, who was a minor at the time, robbed and stabbed the 28-year-old make-up artist 16 times in a violent attack that shocked the community.
Following his arrest and conviction, Du Preez was sentenced under the Child Justice Act to two years and 245 days in a child and youth care facility, followed by an additional eight-year prison sentence. The court ordered that his conduct at the youth centre would later be evaluated before deciding whether the eight-year imprisonment would be enforced.
While serving his time at the Horizon Youth Correctional Centre in Faure, Du Preez was involved in violent incidents, including assaulting staff members at the facility. Due to the seriousness of these incidents and the nature of his original crime, a High Court order in July 2024 directed that Du Preez and two other offenders be transferred to Pollsmoor Correctional Centre for continued incarceration.
However, during a later court appearance related to the assault on staff, a serious administrative error occurred. Du Preez and the two other offenders were incorrectly processed as remand detainees rather than sentenced prisoners and were wrongfully released from custody despite the High Court order that they remain imprisoned.
During the period in which Du Preez was unlawfully free, he committed further crimes, including an armed robbery. He was later re-arrested and convicted for this offence. The court sentenced him to 36 months’ imprisonment, of which 18 months were suspended for five years.
The court has now reviewed the reports submitted by the youth facility manager and a probation officer regarding Du Preez’s conduct during his time in the rehabilitation facility. Both reports indicated that he failed to use the opportunity to rehabilitate himself. According to the findings, he frequently avoided rehabilitation programmes or failed to attend without valid reasons, behaved disrespectfully toward educators, and was involved in violent altercations with staff members.
Magistrate Richard Sikhwivhula noted that Du Preez had been given a fair opportunity to rehabilitate himself but had failed to do so. Both the defence and the state acknowledged that the reports showed no meaningful rehabilitation had taken place.
Action Society spokesperson Kaylynn Palm welcomed the court’s decision.
“Action Society welcomes the court’s decision that Du Preez must serve his full additional eight-year sentence. In light of his behaviour after being unlawfully released, it is clear that he is a dangerous repeat offender. The opportunity for rehabilitation was given to him and he did not use it. Instead, he continued committing violent crimes. No rehabilitation occurred and he remains a danger to society.”
Palm added that the case also highlights serious failures within the criminal justice system.
“The unlawful release of a convicted murderer due to administrative negligence should never happen. When dangerous offenders are allowed back into society because of bureaucratic failures, the public is placed at risk. Action Society will continue to push for accountability and transparency regarding how this release occurred.”With the court now confirming that the additional eight-year prison sentence must be served in full, Action Society believes the ruling restores an important measure of justice for Suritha Alting and her family.
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