Four days after initially reported to police, the decomposing body of an unknown East London person was finally removed from veld near the Nahoon Dam yesterday afternoon.
An owner of a nearby farm, who declined to be named, told the Daily Dispatch that the person looking after his herd of cattle found the body while returning from the dam to his farm on Friday.
The farm owner would not comment further as he feared he would be implicated in the death of the man as farmers were “always accused of killings that take place on their farms”.
He said he called Amatola Water to report the incident.
Amatola Water employee Andiswa Mema reported the matter to the Mdantsane NU1 police station and no police were dispatched.
Contacted on Friday by the Daily Dispatch regarding the body, Mdantsane cluster police spokesman Captain Mluleki Mbi said the case was not reported by “radio control” and did not exist.
The law dictates that when a body is found the police must be called to certify the person dead, and remove the body for forensic investigation into the cause of death.
When the Dispatch team arrived at the scene yesterday, the stench from the already decomposing body could be smelt from the side of the road about 100m away.
In the blistering heat of East London’s weather yesterday, flies were buzzing around in the area.
The Dispatch arrived just after 11am and there was one police van on site.
After 30 minutes another vehicle arrived. After noon the forensic unit arrived to fetch the body, but they too could not touch it until police photographers had taken pictures of the body on the scene.
The body appeared to be that of a man. It had been lying uncovered for four days and had turned pitch black. There were no easily visible wounds.
Police spokesman Nkosikho Mzuko said an inquest docket has been opened.
“Police can confirm that the body was located and retrieved today. An inquest docket has been opened and will be investigated.
“The call was received on Friday and police were immediately dispatched to the scene but the body could not be located.
“Attempts to trace the caller to establish the exact location of the body were in vain as the cellphone was on voicemail,” he said.
— sisiphoz@dispatch.co.za
Police take four days to remove man’s body
An owner of a nearby farm, who declined to be named, told the Daily Dispatch that the person looking after his herd of cattle found the body while returning from the dam to his farm on Friday.
The farm owner would not comment further as he feared he would be implicated in the death of the man as farmers were “always accused of killings that take place on their farms”.
He said he called Amatola Water to report the incident.
Amatola Water employee Andiswa Mema reported the matter to the Mdantsane NU1 police station and no police were dispatched.
Contacted on Friday by the Daily Dispatch regarding the body, Mdantsane cluster police spokesman Captain Mluleki Mbi said the case was not reported by “radio control” and did not exist.
The law dictates that when a body is found the police must be called to certify the person dead, and remove the body for forensic investigation into the cause of death.
When the Dispatch team arrived at the scene yesterday, the stench from the already decomposing body could be smelt from the side of the road about 100m away.
In the blistering heat of East London’s weather yesterday, flies were buzzing around in the area.
The Dispatch arrived just after 11am and there was one police van on site.
After 30 minutes another vehicle arrived. After noon the forensic unit arrived to fetch the body, but they too could not touch it until police photographers had taken pictures of the body on the scene.
The body appeared to be that of a man. It had been lying uncovered for four days and had turned pitch black. There were no easily visible wounds.
Police spokesman Nkosikho Mzuko said an inquest docket has been opened.
“Police can confirm that the body was located and retrieved today. An inquest docket has been opened and will be investigated.
“The call was received on Friday and police were immediately dispatched to the scene but the body could not be located.
“Attempts to trace the caller to establish the exact location of the body were in vain as the cellphone was on voicemail,” he said.
— sisiphoz@dispatch.co.za
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