The East London Regional Court ordered a couple and owners of Enyobeni tavern to pay R5 000 fine each or spend 100 days in prison The court found Siyakhangela and Vuyokazi Ndevu guilty on a charge of selling alcohol to underage children. The couple hosted a pens down party in 2022 for under aged learners which led to the tragic death of 21 of them.

Despite the pair attempting to remove themselves from the situation with one claiming that they were not around when the incident happened and the other saying they were not involved, the court still found that the state had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt. State prosecutor ThangoPhangalela presented compelling evidence which included testimonies from nine witnesses including survivors, and CCTV footage from the night of 26 June 2022. "In argument Enyobeni tavern had failed to enforce age restrictions, a violation of the Eastern Cape Liquor Act. Additionally, testimony from neighbours and officials from the Eastern Cape Liquor Board corroborated the prosecution's case," said Phangalela.

In handing down his sentence, the magistrate presiding over the matter,Kevin von Bratt, said it was important to note that this particular judgment only focuses on the aspect of the couple selling liquor to minors, which is the contravention of the Liqour Act and not their deaths. "It is impossible to determine how much knowledge the Ndevus had of what was prohibited in terms of liquor being sold to minors. The court established beyond reasonable doubt that at least one minor was sold alcohol on the night in question. If there had been proper policing and control measures in place, the victims would not have died," he said. He explained that a formal inquest into the death of the 21 minors aged between 13 and 17 is still being probed.