FAMILY BLAME SHODDY ’ COPS
Missing uncle buried as a pauper
A SOWETO family whose elderly relative was buried as a pauper last week blame the police for failing to do their job properly.
Bhekinkosi Shabangu, 67, was reported missing to the police in Diepkloof, Soweto, on October 14 last year, the day after his disappearance.
Exactly three months later, he was given a pauper ’ s burial after his body remained unclaimed at the Hillbrow government mortuary in Johannesburg.
His family is furious that police failed to identify Shabangu, who was found dead in Naturena, Johannesburg, on October 15.
This was despite a docket containing his full names and fingerprints and his picture appearing on national newspapers with the family ’ s contact details.
Shabangu ’ s nephew Themba Shabangu said the search for his uncle ended on Monday when they saw pictures of his dead body with a police officer investigating the case of murder.
“The pictures are horrible. All my family members are unable to cope with what we saw. He has missing teeth and his nose seems fractured and misplaced. His head had so many scars.
“Police now say he could have been killed elsewhere and dumped in Naturena because they did not find bloodstains at the scene,” Shabangu said.
He said the family found out that his uncle had been buried after they had his picture published in Sowetan again last Thursday. “A social worker from Pretoria called us to say that she had worked on the case and that my uncle had been buried. But how? Why didn ’ t the police pick up his details from the system because he was reported missing.
“How could anyone working with unidentified bodies miss the adverts in newspapers? We feel someone in the police did not do their job.
“The body number the social worker gave us belonged to someone else at the Hillbrow mortuary. We viewed the body and it was not my uncle,” said Shabangu.
He said the family would have to perform rituals and rebury his uncle. But they will have to wait for a few more weeks before the body can be exhumed and arrange for a reburial.
Diepkloof police spokeswoman Phephi Matlou said information about Shabangu had been circulated.
“Everything was done according to [procedure]. The details were circulated and sent to the Missing Person ’ s Bureau.
“The officer handling the case advised the family to go to the mortuaries to look for him,” Matlou said.