KZN Man Jailed for Sharing Explicit Pictures of President Ramaphosa and Bheki Cele
A 36-year-old KwaZulu-Natal man has been sentenced to five years in prison for creating and sharing digitally manipulated explicit images featuring the faces of President Cyril Ramaphosa, former Police Minister Bheki Cele, and Cele’s wife, Thembeka Ngcobo.
Scebi Nene appeared before the Pietermaritzburg Regional Court, where he pleaded guilty to cyber forgery, cyber uttering, and distributing intimate images. His crimes took place between September 2022 and May 2023.
According to KwaZulu-Natal National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, Nene had downloaded pornographic content, then edited the images to superimpose the faces of the complainants. He circulated the doctored content across various online platforms.
In a written plea, Nene revealed that he once worked for Coca-Cola between 2018 and 2019. During that time, he began to believe he was being followed. He claimed to have reported his suspicions to several police stations, the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID), and the Hawks—but said his concerns were ignored.
Frustrated and feeling abandoned by authorities, Nene admitted that he lashed out by targeting prominent figures, including Ramaphosa and Cele, through the creation and distribution of fake explicit images. He expressed remorse in court and promised never to repeat the offence.
The case was prosecuted by Adv Shika Siverpersad. For the charge of cyber forgery, Nene was sentenced to five years behind bars. The charges of cyber uttering and distribution of intimate imagery were combined, resulting in an additional three-year sentence. However, the court ruled that both sentences will run concurrently.