Sandisa Myeza, 15, was backed against a wall at school as a stocky first XV rugby player, angered by Sandisa’s refusal to hand over his new iPhone, head-butted him and broke his nose.
In a scene captured on CCTV in the recreation room at Maritzburg College hostel on a Saturday night in January, a child’s face was broken and a pall was cast over the prestigious school’s reputation.
Sandisa’s mother, Nandi Ngcobo, is now fighting for justice, believing the school and the justice system have let her son down.
But the school says correct procedures were followed and appropriate penalties imposed.
While Ngcobo has given permission for her son to be identified, his attacker cannot be named. Although he is now 18, he was a minor at the time of the altercation. He appeared in court but the charges were withdrawn.
The school governing body told the Sunday Times that after the incident, the older boy was collected by his parents and he was suspended from the hostel, though he was allowed to continue as a day pupil.
The governing body said the required notice for a disciplinary hearing was served and a panel of experienced educators conducted this within six working days, on February 3.
“As the pertinent facts were established prior to the hearing and [the pupil] admitted his wrongdoing, in-person testimony and that of his family was not needed to establish guilt or the extent of injuries,” the governing body said.
It said Ngcobo was informed of the outcome and forwarded a letter of apology. Her son was offered counselling by the school but declined.
“Considering the severity of this incident and balancing the needs of learners and the school, corrective and punitive sanctions were put in place,” the governing body said.
It said the pupil still attended the school as a day scholar. “Both were minors at the time of the incident. Numerous senior staff have frequently checked in with [Sandisa] and he has not indicated any distress or ill feelings towards the perpetrator.”
The governing body maintains the school does not tolerate violence or bullying, and the incident was investigated by senior management swiftly and decisively, “in accordance with our code of conduct and past practice”.
“We treated this as a one-off offence, there is no history of victimisation, bullying or violence with either boy. Learner 1 has shown remorse and there have been no other incidents involving either boy.
“We regret that learner 2’s mother has refused to personally engage with the school on this matter. We were informed that she has sought legal action against learner 1 via the criminal court. We are doing our utmost to assist the SAPS investigating officers.”
Ngcobo said her son was traumatised, but for the offender “it’s business as usual, we’ve watched him play first team rugby two weekends in a row”.
Ngcobo opened an assault case with the police. The perpetrator was arrested on March 3 and held overnight, but was released in court the next morning.
When she asked why, Ngcobo was told the incorrect procedure had been followed — he had been arrested as an adult but because he was 17, a social worker should have been present.
Despite an undertaking by the senior public prosecutor that a new investigation would be launched, no criminal case has been opened.
I wish to extend my sincere apologies to Sandisa and the entire family for the harm I have caused. Hope you will find it in your hearts to forgive me
— Perpetrator to victim
“I want justice for my son. I want the school to admit the seriousness of what happened,” said Ngcobo. She said the school provided one minute of video footage showing the headbutt, but it was edited to exclude “a good 30 minutes” showing the bigger boy intimidating, punching and “throwing” Sandisa beforehand.
She said the assault had affected her son severely: “I got to the school at about 8.30pm that night and found him badly injured. His nose was skew and bleeding and he was hysterical.”
He was admitted to Hillcrest Hospital, where a doctor told Ngcobo the injury was serious.
The trouble began, she said, when the bigger boy demanded to use her son’s phone to check social media. Sandisa was reluctant, but agreed to let him use it for 10 minutes. But after almost 40 minutes, with the older boy refusing to return the phone, he snatched it back.
She said the bully told Sandisa: “I’m coming back for you and the phone.”
Sandisa spent six days at home after his initial trip to the hospital and was readmitted for surgery to repair his nose.
Ngcobo informed the school of her son’s injuries, and provided the medical records. The school told her these would be evidence at the disciplinary hearing, but they were not submitted.
“The school did come back to tell me there had been a hearing — I don’t even know what day it was. They decided the boy should just apologise to my son. They forwarded us that letter — which was a lousy apology by the way,” she said.
The apology reads: “I want to deeply apologise for the harm I have caused to Sandisa, it was unplanned and inappropriate but also against the values and standards upheld by the school and boarding establishment.”
He signed off: “I wish to extend my sincere apologies to Sandisa and the entire family for the harm I have caused. Hope you will find it in your hearts to forgive me.”
Ngcobo said the school promised to send both boys for therapy, including anger management for the bully. “But at that point I had found our own psychologist.”
She said her lawyer was now handling the matter and she was personally no longer engaging with the school.
Ngcobo reported the case to the provincial education department. It did not respond to requests for comment.
In the meantime, Sandisa continues to have trauma counselling and his latest school report reflected a dramatic drop in marks, his mother said. She is trying to get him enrolled at a new school.
“At what point will this matter be taken seriously? Maybe if my son had died.”
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