A 71-year-old woman has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for each of the murders of her three young great-grandchildren after driving them off a mountain pass in the Western Cape in November 2021.
According to the Citizen, Susara Johanna de Villiers was sentenced by the Worcester Regional Court after pleading guilty to the premeditated killings of Caleb, eight, Gradwell, five, and Joshua, two. The court ordered that the three sentences run concurrently, meaning she will serve them at the same time.
The children died from multiple blunt force injuries after the vehicle De Villiers was driving plunged down the mountainside at Bainskloof Pass near Ceres on 20 November 2021.
Although De Villiers admitted to the murders, she claimed diminished responsibility in her plea explanation. However, a psychiatric assessment found that she was mentally fit to stand trial and understood the wrongfulness of her actions.
National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said the state presented evidence that the children had previously been removed from their parents’ care because of neglect and substance abuse.
They initially stayed with De Villiers and her husband for approximately three months before being placed with a maternal relative. About a week before the fatal incident, their mother and her partner were arrested on charges relating to child neglect.
What happened on Bainskloof Pass?
The court heard that De Villiers collected the children for the day while their caregiver attended a wedding.
Between 16:30 and 17:00, she placed the children in her vehicle, apparently to take them back to their caregiver. According to the state’s account, the children cried and begged to stay with her.
Ntabazalila said De Villiers told them to say goodbye to their great-grandfather and reassured them that nobody would hurt them again.
However, prosecutor Cornelius Prinsloo argued that De Villiers did not travel towards the children’s home. Instead, she drove approximately 23 kilometres to Bainskloof Pass, passing several traffic control points along the way.
The prosecution argued that she intended to kill herself and the children by driving off the cliff.
At the summit, the court heard, De Villiers considered whether to stop and call her husband or continue towards Ceres. She ultimately drove through a gap in the barriers, sending the vehicle down the mountainside and into a riverbed.
De Villiers was wearing a seatbelt, but the three children were not restrained. All three died from their injuries.
Evidence presented to the court established that De Villiers was sober, the vehicle was mechanically sound and visibility was good at the time of the crash.
Psychiatric assessment found no evidence of psychosis
During her testimony in November 2025, De Villiers described feeling unlike herself before the incident, saying that something had switched off. She also said she could not pinpoint exactly when she made the decision and that there were moments when she did not believe she was doing anything wrong.
She was referred to Valkenberg Psychiatric Hospital for a 30-day mental observation.
According to the NPA, the psychiatric panel found that De Villiers was mentally fit, could appreciate the wrongfulness of her actions and was capable of acting in accordance with that understanding. The assessment found no evidence of psychosis and described her conduct as “goal-directed but impulsive”.
De Villiers did not contest the panel’s findings.
The prosecution also presented post-mortem reports for the children, an accident reconstruction report and a mechanical analysis of the vehicle to support its case.
De Villiers told court about trauma and depression
During sentencing proceedings, De Villiers testified about her difficult childhood, poverty and three suicide attempts during her adolescence.
She also described the emotional impact of a car accident in January 2020 involving herself and her stepdaughter, who later died from burn injuries sustained in the collision.
De Villiers said she experienced depression following the accident and her stepdaughter’s death, but received limited treatment.
In arguing for a lengthy prison sentence, Prinsloo acknowledged the personal hardships and depression described by the accused but maintained that they could not outweigh the deliberate killing of three young children who had been entrusted to her care.
The prosecution stressed that children should be protected by the adults responsible for their wellbeing.
Court orders three 20-year sentences to run concurrently
The Worcester Regional Court imposed a 20-year direct imprisonment sentence for each of the three murders, with all terms running concurrently.
The NPA said the outcome followed scrutiny of De Villiers’ plea and the supporting evidence gathered by the state.
Ntabazalila commended investigating officer Warrant Officer Michael Pretorius and prosecutor Prinsloo for their work in strengthening the case and securing the outcome for the three children.
The sentence brings the court proceedings over the deaths of Caleb, Gradwell and Joshua to a conclusion, following a case that examined the circumstances of the crash, De Villiers’ mental state and the prosecution’s argument that the killings were premeditated.
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