This could be Netflix's most shocking true crime documentary. Here's the real story.

This story includes descriptions of sexual assault/domestic violence that may be distressing to some readers.

A young model thought she was meeting her boyfriend for a weekend away. Instead, she was brutally murdered.

The man responsible, Thabo Bester, had already lured women online, promising them modelling contracts and glamorous opportunities. But behind the confident smile and slick promises was a man who became one of South Africa's most infamous criminals.

His story involves allegations of rape, murder, fraud, and a prison escape so elaborate that, for months, the world thought he was dead.

Now, Netflix has made a documentary about it all, called Beauty and the Bester. Here's everything you need to know.

Watch: The official trailer for Netflix's 'Beauty and the Bester'. Post continues after video.

Who is Thabo Bester?

Thabo Bester was born in South Africa in 1986, and by his mid-20s, he had built a dark reputation. Known as "the Facebook Rapist," he used the social media platform to target women.

Bester would pose as a modelling agent or talent scout, offering young women lucrative contracts and the chance to break into the entertainment industry. Once they agreed to meet him, the façade would drop.

Instead of jobs, the women were met with violence.

In 2011, Bester was convicted of raping and robbing two women. He admitted in court to using social media to manipulate his victims. Just a year later, he killed his girlfriend, model Nomfundo Tyhulu, at a bed and breakfast, and was sentenced to life behind bars.

But prison was far from the end of his story.

Thabo Bester's arrest and prison life.

When Bester was sentenced in 2012, he was sent to the Mangaung Correctional Centre, a maximum-security prison run by a private security company.

But even behind bars, he found ways to manipulate the system. Inmates and guards recalled how Bester attracted attention from outsiders. He became "popular," with fans coming to visit.

He also continued scamming.

Using fake business documents, he launched 21st Century Media, a company that pretended to be linked to Rupert Murdoch's 21st Century Fox. Bester used this fake venture to swindle money from people outside prison.

Thabo Bester's escape from prison.

In March 2022, prison authorities announced that Thabo Bester had died in a fire in his cell. His charred body was discovered in the early hours of the morning.

But forensic details quickly raised alarm bells; the body was shorter than Bester's recorded height, DNA testing showed no match with Bester's mother, and the autopsy revealed blunt-force trauma to the head and no signs of smoke inhalation.

In other words, the man in the cell had died before the fire. And it wasn't Thabo Bester.

The person who had been murdered and burned in Bester's place was later identified as Katlego Bereng Mpholo, a man reported missing in 2022.

Meanwhile, reports surfaced that Bester had bribed prison guards, secured a special isolation cell, and used a fire escape with minimal CCTV coverage to vanish into the night.

But one woman was allegedly integral to the plan: Nandipha Magudumana.

Nandipha Magudumana. Image: Getty

Who is Nandipha Magudumana?

Nandipha Magudumana (née Sekeleni) was once a rising star in South Africa's cosmetic surgery and aesthetics scene. She studied at the University of the Witwatersrand, and built a clinic in Johannesburg called Optimum Medical Aesthetics Solutions, where she treated high-profile clients.

Magudumana, who was married with two daughters, became romantically linked with Bester. She visited him in prison regularly, and in 2020 he even proposed to her while behind bars.

After the fire broke out in Bester's cell, Magudumana claimed the burned body under "customary-law wife" status. She was then able to take it from the state mortuary to a private funeral home.

When police seized the body back due to their suspicions, Magudumana tried to claim it back from the morgue, but was denied.

What happened when Thabo Bester escaped prison?

When out of prison, instead of lying low, Bester reinvented himself. Using the alias TK Nkwana, he moved into a luxury mansion in Johannesburg with Magudumana.

The pair lived a high-end lifestyle, shopping at designer stores, driving luxury cars, and running Arum Properties, a fraudulent construction company that allegedly scammed victims out of millions.

According to the documentary, Bester even photoshopped his face onto celebrities' bodies to create the illusion of fame and influence, luring more investors into his scams.

Their façade began to unravel in 2023 when photos surfaced of the couple casually shopping at a Woolworths in Sandton City, one of Johannesburg's wealthiest suburbs. South Africa's Department of Correctional Services was forced to admit the truth: Thabo Bester had escaped prison nearly a year earlier.

By then, the couple had fled.

Thabo Bester. Image: Getty

Thabo Bester's re-arrest.

In April 2023, after an international manhunt, Bester and Magudumana were arrested in Arusha, Tanzania, near the Kenyan border. They had reportedly fled South Africa by car through Zimbabwe and were planning to continue north.

Both were deported back to South Africa, where they were charged with multiple new offences, including fraud, violating a corpse, and defeating the ends of justice. They have both pleaded not guilty.

Magudumana's father and several prison employees were also charged in connection with the escape and the use of Katlego Bereng's body as a decoy, though the murder charge against Magudumana's father was later dropped.

Where is Thabo Bester now?

Thabo Bester is back behind bars, serving his original life sentence, and now facing additional charges related to his escape. Nandipha Magudumana is also currently in custody and awaiting trial. She has separated from her husband and her medical credentials remain in question.

In court, both Bester and Magudumana tried to stop Netflix from releasing Beauty and the Bester, arguing that it would prejudice their right to a fair trial. A judge disagreed, saying the story was already in the public domain.

Beauty and the Bester is now streaming on Netflix. The three-part series is a tale of manipulation, glamour, and horror that proves truth is often stranger than fiction.

Feature Image: Getty

If you or anyone you know needs to speak with an expert, please contact 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) — the National Sexual Assault, domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service.