A Gauteng High Court has granted the National Prosecuting Authority’s application to reopen the murder trial of the man accused of starting South Africa’s deadliest building fire.
The court sitting in Palm Ridge has allowed the State to call additional expert witnesses to clarify inconsistencies in post-mortem reports in the case against Lawrance Sithembiso Mdlalose (30), who faces 76 counts of murder and 12 counts of attempted murder.
The decision comes after the court identified discrepancies in some of the post-mortem findings following the closure of both the State and defence cases. Both parties had already filed heads of argument and presented oral submissions before the matter was reserved for judgment.
Background to the tragedy
The Usindiso building fire broke out shortly after midnight on 31 August 2023 at 80 Albert Street in central Johannesburg. The blaze claimed the lives of 76 people, including 12 children, and left several others injured, making it the deadliest building fire in the city’s history.
According to the State’s case, Mdlalose, who was a resident of the five-storey building, allegedly assaulted a man known as “KB” during a dispute over money related to drugs. Believing that the victim had died, Mdlalose allegedly purchased petrol, returned to the building, poured it over the victim’s body and set it alight in an attempt to conceal the alleged assault.
The fire spread rapidly throughout the building, which was partitioned into small living spaces using highly flammable materials such as plywood and fabric.
Conditions worsened the death toll
The scale of the loss of life was significantly worsened by hazardous conditions at the illegally occupied building. Security gates and emergency doors throughout the building were locked or chained, trapping residents inside as the fire spread. The structure, which housed hundreds of people including many vulnerable migrants and asylum seekers, completely lacked operational fire safety equipment.
A Commission of Inquiry chaired by Judge Sisi Khampepe found the City of Johannesburg and the Joburg Property Company partially responsible for the tragedy. The inquiry concluded that the City had been aware of dangerous conditions at the building since at least 2019 but failed to take action or enforce municipal bylaws.
Inspections of approximately 110 inner-city properties following the fire revealed that nearly 80% had significant fire safety concerns and 71% lacked any fire safety equipment.
Fresh evidence to be heard
Following the court’s ruling, the State will now call expert witnesses to provide evidence and clarify aspects of the post-mortem findings in line with the court’s directives.
The NPA said the reopening of the case will ensure that all relevant evidence is properly ventilated before the court and that the matter is determined in the interests of justice.
The case has been postponed until tomorrow, 19 August, for the hearing of further evidence.
