Lesego Mary Masina, a 32-year-old South African woman, was fatally shot in her home in Boikhutsong Phase 8, Mabopane, Tshwane, on July 20, 2025, six months after receiving a threatening letter warning her to “stay away from my man.” The attack, initially disguised as a robbery, has left her family and community devastated, with calls for justice intensifying.
According to Lesego’s sister, Ofense Masina, 27, three masked gunmen wearing balaclavas stormed their home around 8:00 PM, during a power outage. The assailants, armed with torches, ordered the seven family members present to remain silent, claiming they did not intend to kill anyone. After searching the house for 15 minutes and asking for names, the gunmen identified Lesego, took her to a bedroom, and shot her once in the head. They fled with two cell phones (a Samsung Galaxy and Huawei Y70) and R150, reinforcing the family’s belief that the robbery was a pretext for a targeted killing.
Ofense recounted a chilling prior incident in February 2025, when an anonymous letter, accompanied by two bullets, was delivered to their home at night with the message, “Stay away from my man, please. Your days are numbered.” The family received a call alerting them to the “parcel,” but the sender’s identity remains unknown. “We don’t know who killed Lesego. We need justice,” Ofense told The Sun, echoed by their father, Paulous Masina, 57, who insisted, “These thugs wanted to kill her; it wasn’t a robbery.”
Paulous, who described Lesego as joyful during a church funeral earlier that day, expressed frustration with the South African Police Service (SAPS) for failing to act on the February threat. “Police failed us during the first incident of a letter,” he said. The SAPS Tshwane District has confirmed the murder investigation, with no arrests made as of July 29, 2025. Lieutenant-Colonel Mavela Masondo told News24 that detectives are following leads, appealing for public assistance via CrimeStop at 08600 10111.
Sentiment on X reflects outrage, with users like @ElnaMkhize___ emphasizing that Lesego’s death was a targeted execution, not a result of jealousy, and highlighting systemic issues of violence against women. @DandaroOnline and @Am_Blujay noted the precision of the attack, fueling speculation of a personal motive tied to the earlier threat. The case has reignited concerns about crime in Tshwane, where high-profile killings, like that of Bacardi singer Vusi Ma R5 in Mabopane in 2023, remain unresolved
Lesego’s family, grappling with grief, is demanding accountability, as the community mourns a woman whose life was cut short in a calculated act ofabc violence.
