A 71-year-old South African woman, Susana “Sarie” De Villiers, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for killing her three great-grandchildren after driving a vehicle off a mountain pass in 2021.
According to South African news outlet Nova News, De Villiers was sentenced on Thursday by the Worcester Regional Court in the Western Cape. She had pleaded guilty to the three m¥rders in March 2025.
The victims were identified as Caleb Booysen, eight, Gradwell Booysen, five; and Joshua Booysen, 18 months old.
The incident happened on November 20, 2021, when the children were visiting De Villiers and other relatives at her home in Wellington. She was expected to drive them home that day, but they never arrived.
Eyewitnesses reportedly told authorities that roadworks were underway along Bainskloof Pass, with traffic officers controlling vehicles at designated stop and go points. However, De Villiers allegedly drove past the control points without stopping and went through a closed boom gate.
