Khayelitsha Community Calls for Justice After 16-Year-Old Killed Following Alleged Robbery Attempt

• Furious residents in Site C, Khayelitsha, Western Cape, are demanding justice after a 16-year-old was found murdered
• The lifeless body of Kwakhanya “Ntlanganiso” Mhlanganisi was found in Site C, Khayalitsha, with multiple injuries
• The 16-year-old Mhlanganisi was allegedly confronted by a group of boys who mocked him after they tried to rob him
• The South African Police Service in the Western Cape confirmed the incident to Briefly News

Justin Williams, a journalist at Briefly News since 2024, covers South Africa’s current affairs. Before joining Briefly News, he served as a writer and chief editor at Right for Education Africa’s South African chapter.

Community members in Khayalitsha in the Western Cape are demanding justice after a 16-year-old was found brutally murdered. Kwakhanya “Ntlanganiso” Mhlanganisi was found in Site C, Khayalitsha, with multiple injuries after a brutal attack.

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What did SAPS say?

According to police spokesperson Colonel Andrè Traut, Mhlanganisi was killed on Thursday, 4 December 2025, in Site C, Khayelitsha, after an altercation with two acquaintances. He was assaulted and later died from his injuries. SAPS launched an investigation and arrested a 17-year-old suspect, who appeared in the Khayelitsha Magistrates’ Court on Monday, 8 December 2025. Traut stated that police are still searching for the second suspect.

IOL reported that on Monday, 8 December 2025, residents gathered outside the Khayelitsha Magistrate’s Court, insisting that the attack was driven by homophobia and calling for justice. Sibusiso Orestes Nqunqeka from the Khulani Khayelitsha Queer Hub said the teenager suffered a severe assault before being set alight and killed. He said the incident had left the community shaken and that many believed he was targeted. Nqunqeka added that residents wanted a harsh sentence for the accused to discourage future hate crimes.

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Attacked with bricks and stones

The victim’s aunt, Nontombi Mthegeni, told IOL that her nephew was a cheerful child with many friends. According to her, Ntlanganiso was confronted by a group of boys who mocked him with homophobic insults and allegedly tried to rob him of his drinks. He managed to get away, but the group reportedly went after him, found him in a passage and attacked him with bricks and stones.

Colonel André Traut told Briefly News that the Western Cape police are concerned about media claims that the murder of 16-year-old Kwakhanya Mhlanganisi was a homophobic attack. He said SAPS had already stated that the motive had not been confirmed, yet some media reports continued to suggest it was linked to homophobia.

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"We find it necessary to correct this misinformation to prevent unnecessary alarm within a community already burdened by high levels of violent crime. The case remains under investigation, and the exact motive will be determined as the matter progresses, he said."

3 Similar stories reported by Briefly News

• Briefly News previously reported that a group of teenagers had been arrested for allegedly murdering a teenage boy in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape.
• A Veeplaas youth in Gqeberha was sentenced to five years at a juvenile detention centre for murder.
• A 13-year-old from Delft in Cape Town in the Western Cape was found with multiple stab wounds on his body.

Source: Briefly News