Mbabane – A 28-year-old man of Mvutjini by the name of Gugulethu Sihlongonyane has been found guilty of physically abusing his girlfriend after he ran over her foot with a motor vehicle during a dispute.
Sihlongonyane appeared before Principal Magistrate Fikile Nhlabatsi at the Mbabane Magistrates Court charged with contravening Section 77(1)(a) of the Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Act of 2018.
His partner, the complainant, was hospitalised for injuries on the right foot. It emerged in court that they had just had an altercation on 25 November 2025.
According to the chargesheet, Sihlongonyane did not only unlawfully and intentionally cause harm to Dladla when he drove over her but also endangered her safety, health, and wellbeing.
Sihlongonyane pleaded guilty and apologised in court, saying he did not intend to hurt her. He told the court that emotions were not high during the argument and that the situation escalated unexpectedly.
“I told her to get out of my car, since we did not see eye to eye about what we have been talking about,” he said.
He further said he thought she jumped, adding that as the mother of his children, he would not want his children to grow up with a disabled mother.
He added that the disagreements between them were from long ago when the mother of his children was supposed to come for a visit but she never showed up, and on the day of the accident he had gone to talk to her, but things went south. He said they have since separated and are no longer together.
Nhlabatsi warned the accused against being violent, further advised him to seek his father’s advice.
“If you love your girlfriend, treat her better. If you no longer love her, then leave her,” Nhlabatsi said.
Sihlongonyane was sentenced to pay a fine of E5,000, in default of payment 5 years and E4000 of the sentence was suspended for three years, on condition that he does not commit a similar offence during the suspension period.
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