The plea negotiations between the State and the call centre manager, Mfanafuthi Kunene, who allegedly killed Ayabonga Mjilo, collapsed at the last minute.
Kunene is alleged to have buried the 21-year-old in a shallow grave at his iNanda home and cemented it.
He was expected to plead guilty and reveal details of what happened to Mjilo in December 2024 to the Durban High Court on Wednesday morning.
However, State prosecutor Advocate Gugu Xulu announced that the State would no longer accept Kunene’s plea, stating: “We are ready to proceed with trial.”
Although the reasons were not stated in court, sources close to the investigation suggested the breakdown centred on disagreements over how the murder happened and the sentence Kunene was prepared to accept.
Mjilo was last seen leaving an Umhlanga restaurant on December 24 with a man, and her body was discovered in Kunene’s home about two weeks later. Kunene led police to the place where her body was buried upon his arrest in January 2025.
Judge Mluleki Chithi said there may be a conflict of interest due to what Kunene had told his Legal Aid lawyer, Musa Chiliza, when he intended to plead guilty.
“As a result of that, Chiliza will no longer represent you or continue to represent you for the trial. In circumstances such as this, it’s only fair that the lawyer who was representing you withdraws because he can’t objectively deal with the matter,” Judge Chithi explained.
Judge Chithi ordered Legal Aid South Africa to appoint either an in-house lawyer or a judicare lawyer for Kunene.
After a brief adjournment, Chiliza informed the court that no in-house lawyers were available.
Judge Chithi then noted an email from Legal Aid indicating that it could not secure a judicare lawyer due to financial constraints.
Ultimately, T P Pillay from Legal Aid was assigned to represent Kunene. The court will confirm Pillay’s availability to proceed with the case on Thursday morning.
A pre-trial conference was held, where Xulu confirmed the State would call seven witnesses, including four police officers.
Kunene stated that he would call three witnesses, including a pathologist, and indicated there would be a trial-within-a-trial regarding the process of pointing out where Mjilo’s body was found.
Kunene confirmed he would testify in English and did not require an interpreter, though Judge Chithi noted one would be needed for court attendees.
When asked if he would testify in person if necessary, Kunene replied ‘yes’.
The matter was postponed to Thursday.
