Three months ago, 35-year-old Soweto man Lebo Mniki was reported missing and he has yet to be found.

He was last seen entering the Respublica Princeton Village student residence in Midrand to visit his girlfriend, but CCTV footage never showed him exiting.

City of Johannesburg Public Safety MMC Dr. Mgcini Tshwaku visited the family in Mofolo South in September to offer support.

In the previous financial year, 4 941 cases of missing persons were reported to the South African Police Service (SAPS), with 2 437 of those cases resolved.

Mniki’s elder sister, Vuyokazi Ntuthu, says the family feels helpless and is unsure where to turn for assistance.

“This has been the most challenging time of our lives, we haven’t given up or stopped searching. It’s taken a toll in our daily lives and we have spent so much money consulting. I can’t even begin to express how painful it is. Not a day goes by that we don’t think of him, pray for him and ask for guidance so we can find him.”

Ntuthu says recent events have taken a toll on Mniki’s children.

“The little one has his days, I think it’s because he was closest to him…He often struggles to sleep, asking to call his dad. So I’ve been trying to spend some time with them to try to bring a little bit of comfort.”

She says the police do not have any feedback on his disappearance, so we escalated the case and laid a formal complaint.

Ntuthu says, “The police were able to retrieve the server with the footage and they called last Saturday to say they could not retrieve anything of the server, that they do not have access to the footage, they were unable to get the footage. However, contrary to that, the police showed us a seven-second clip of Lebo, so the question is, how were they able to retrieve the clip? If they couldn’t access the clip, they are lying; there is a big cover-up that is going on.”

Gauteng Police Spokesperson Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi says there is currently no update on the case and that Mniki is still missing.

“I can only confirm that the matter is still under investigation. Unfortunately, at this stage, I am not at liberty to provide details of the investigation.”

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