Mfanafuthi Kunene (37) appeared in the Durban magistrate’s court on Monday with his right eye slightly swollen and walking with a limp.
Kunene kept a dejected figure, totally avoiding contact. The courtroom, situated near the famous Durban railway station, was packed with people.
Scores of members of the public, family members, and government officials converged to see the man behind the alleged brutal murder of 22-year-old Ayabonga Mjilo.
KwaZulu-Natal premier Thamsanqa Ntuli also attended the court proceedings. Kunene faces charges of murder, kidnapping, and defeating the ends of justice.
State awaits postmortem report
State prosecutor Desiree Boyang-Mlondo asked for a postponement to allow the prosecution team to conduct further investigations.
While Kunene, believed to be a manager at an establishment located in the affluent suburb of uMhlanga, solicited the services of a legal aid lawyer who explained that his client had no ambitions to request bail, the state quickly called for an adjournment.
Boyang-Mlondo said the prosecution needed time to gather evidence such as DNA and summon an eyewitness.
These, the state believes, will sufficiently link Kunene to the heartbreaking gender-based murder.
“The state wishes to have the matter adjourned for further investigations. This will allow us time to study the postmortem report,” said Boyang-Mlondo.
“There are also witness statements that are outstanding and the DNA results.”
The brutal killing, whose motive has not been disclosed, caused shock waves across the province and is said to have taken place in the few days leading to New Year’s Eve.
Buried in a shallow grave
CCTV footage, which is now the subject of court evidence, depicts Kunene sitting cosily together with the deceased at a famous entertainment establishment in uMhlanga on December 24.
The pair is later seen leaving the establishment and disappearing into thin air.
When Mjilo did not come back home as per usual that evening, distraught family members reached out to police, reporting her missing.
A few days later, her lifeless body was discovered buried in a shallow grave in the yard of Kunene’s home in Inanda’s Amaotana area, leaving her family shattered and seeking answers.
The deceased, while a native of eHlokozi near Highflats in the KwaZulu-Natal midlands, was living at Quarry Heights in Avoca Hills, a residential area a few kilometres outside the Durban CBD.
At this stage, it is not known what was the connection between her and Kunene and what was the motive behind the killing. The matter returns to court on February 26.
