The family of Lebo Sonwabo Moleli Mniki (35) is desperately searching for answers after he vanished nearly two weeks ago, with his last known sighting at a Midrand student residence.

Mniki was reportedly visiting his girlfriend at Respublica Princeton Village student accommodation on August 28 when he disappeared. His family learned about his absence when his employer called to inform them that he had not reported for work on August 29.

Mniki’s sister, Vuyo Nyathi, mentioned that they tried to locate him through his friends, who said they last saw him visiting his girlfriend at the residence. Upon visiting the residence, they were informed that he entered the premises in the early hours of the morning, but was never seen leaving. Concerned for his safety, the family opened a missing person’s case at the Midrand Police Station.

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Nyathi has since taken to social media, pleading for help and raising serious concerns about how the case is being handled. She claims that requests for CCTV footage were met with delays, and even the investigating officer received incorrect recordings from the residence before being told to wait longer for the correct footage.

“This lack of transparency is troubling. What are they trying to hide?” Nyathi added that other parents at the campus also reported missing children.

In response, Bronwyn Boavida, the operations managing director of Respublica Student Living, dismissed these allegations, stating that the residence had been co-operative with the police. “The CCTV footage is not missing. We instructed SAPS to retrieve the footage themselves to avoid any suspicion of tampering.

SAPS successfully retrieved all CCTV footage [on September 9]. We continue to support SAPS in their investigation. Respublica was the first to call SAPS to the site to investigate this matter on August 29.”

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Boavida added that the company had not received any other reports of missing residents. Gauteng police spokesperson Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi confirmed that police are investigating. “Police are following up on all leads to reunite him with his family.”

As of September 11, the family said they were still waiting for police feedback on the CCTV footage.
Anyone with information on Lebo Mniki’s whereabouts is urged to contact Sergeant Pale of Midrand detectives at 011 347 1600 or 079 877 6484.

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