14-year-old Likhona Fose's mutilated body was discovered in a veld near her Durban Deep home in June 2025.
Mduduzi Mnisi walked out of the Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court a free man on Wednesday after the state withdrew murder charges against him in the killing of 14-year-old Likhona Fose, a former pupil at Ikusasalethu Secondary School.
The case, which had gripped the West Johannesburg community since Fose’s death, took a dramatic turn after prosecutors received new information that cast doubt on Mnisi’s involvement in the crime.
WATCH: ‘New information came to light’
A presiding magistrate confirmed that the withdrawal of charges followed the emergence of crucial evidence that was not available during Mnisi’s bail application.
“There was new information which came to the fore,” said Magistrate Delize Smith.
“When the state received that particular information, subsequent to the bail application, the state decided to withdraw the charges against the accused. A certificate authorising the withdrawal was issued by the senior public prosecutor.”
Fose’s mutilated body was discovered in a veld near her Durban Deep home in June 2025, prompting a murder investigation and Mnisi’s subsequent arrest.
Earlier this month, Mnisi was granted R5 000 bail by the Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court.
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Mnisi maintains innocence
Speaking outside court, a visibly relieved Mnisi reiterated his innocence and said he had maintained from the beginning that he was being wrongfully accused.
“I knew from the onset that I didn’t commit this crime,” said Mnisi. “That’s why I had an alibi for where I was on the day it happened.”
He also suggested that his past reputation in the community may have made him a target.
“You know, in the location, when they know you used to do wrong things, and now you’ve changed, they don’t accept those kinds of good things,” he said.
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