Thirty-nine-year-old Mduduzi Mnisi has denied ever meeting or knowing Likhona Fose, the 14-year-old he has been accused of murdering.

Fose’s mutilated body was found near her home in Durban Deep, west of Johannesburg, early this month, a day after she was reported missing.

Yesterday, Mnisi told the court that he was wrongfully accused and pleaded not guilty to the charge of premeditated murder.

“I did not do it, I don’t know who the deceased is, I’ve never met up with the deceased, I’ve never even seen her. I only heard when I was charged that I have murdered her,” added Fose.

Fose will appear before the Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court on Gauteng’s West Rand this morning as his bail hearing resumes.

VIDEO | Likhona Fose’s family calls for no bail for Mduduzi Mnisi: