By: Natasha Archary

The man accused of starting the fire in the illegally occupied Marshalltown building, that claimed the lives of 76 people in August 2023 has made a shocking confession.
Apart from confessing at the commission of inquiry to starting the fire, 29-year old Sthembiso Lawrence Mdlalose has since claimed that the reason he started the fire was to conceal a murder he had committed.
The fire tore through the hijacked Usindiso building on Thursday, 31 August 2023, claiming the lives of 76 people, including 12 children.
More than 50 others were injured and all surviving occupants were displaced and moved to temporary shelter as a result.
The bodies of most of the deceased were burnt beyond recognition, to the point that family members had to wait for DNA test results to identify their loved ones.
On Thursday, 25 January, Mdlalose made the shocking confession that he started the fire to conceal that he had beaten and strangled another resident to death whilst he was high on drugs.
Due to the building being uninhabitable, without fire escapes, fire sensors, sprinklers or proper ventilation, the fire spread quickly, engulfing the building, leaving a path of death and destruction behind.
On Wednesday, 31 January, several witnesses, and family members of the deceased testified about how the fire had left them devastated after losing their loved ones and all their belongings.
Mdlalose faces 76 counts of murder, 86 counts of attempted murder, as well as charges for arson.
The matter has been postponed to 02 February, owing to the verification of the alleged Usindiso arson suspect’s documents and citizenship status.
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