• A 29-year-old KwaZulu-Natal man allegedly beat his 19-year-old girlfriend to death.
• The woman, Akhona Mncube, is also the mother of his child.
• Police are investigating a case of murder, with the accused due in court soon.

A 29-year-old KwaZulu-Natal man has been arrested for murder after he allegedly beat his 19-year-old girlfriend – and mother of his child – to death, police said on Wednesday.

Akhona Mncube, a Pietermaritzburg resident of Sweetwaters, was beaten so badly that she sustained injuries all over her body, police said.

Police spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbele said she had been assaulted by her partner on Sunday.

"She was certified dead on the following day. A case of murder was opened at Plessislaer police station for investigation. Police arrested a 29-year-old suspect and he will appear in the Pietermaritzburg Magistrate's Court soon."

KwaZulu-Natal Social Development MEC Nonhlanhla Khoza condemned the incident, saying Mncube had died after allegedly "sustaining internal injuries following the assault by her partner with whom they have a child".

She said there was no justification for the killing.

"Gender-based violence has absolutely no place in our society. We have witnessed a number of cases where women die at the hands of those who are supposed to protect them."

She said police should "leave no stone unturned in their investigation and ensure that the suspect does not get bail after this horrific act of murder".

"The investigation should lead to the conviction and a lengthy jail sentence. All those who continue to violate the rights of women and children have no place in our society and therefore must be kept in prison for longer periods."