A student constable accused of shooting dead a Soweto teenager pleaded not guilty to murder in the Johannesburg High Court on Monday.
Sipho Mbatha explained to the court that he did not intentionally kill 16-year-old Thato Mokoka.
“I don't plead guilty to murder, but to culpable homicide. It was not my intention,” he said.
Mbatha allegedly shot Mokoka several times as he lay on the ground outside his grandmother's house in Bramfisherville, Soweto, on February 14.
He claimed his gun went off when he bent over to search Mokoka.
Judge Kathleen Satchwell has granted the media permission to record certain parts of the trial.
The trial continues. - Sapa