Africa-Press – South-Africa. A trailer that was reported stolen in Johannesburg was found in Mpumalanga with a corpse inside.
It was being pulled by a taxi full of passengers and on its way to Mozambique.
Mpumalanga police spokesperson Brigadier Selvy Mohlala said they had since arrested 28-year-old taxi driver Nhlanhla Mkhabela, who appeared at the Nkomazi Magistrate’s Court in Tonga on a charge of theft.
He is expected to apply for bail on 7 August.
Mohlala said Mkhabela was arrested around 19:00 on Thursday last week after a tracking company alerted police about picking up a signal on the stolen trailer on the N4 in Malelane.
“Police intercepted the taxi. When the trailer was searched, police made a shocking discovery when it was found loaded with a corpse in a coffin.
“According to information, the deceased was being transported to Mozambique for burial.
“Arrangements were made with a local funeral parlour for the corpse to be transported to its final destination.”
Mohlala said a corpse could only be transported in a hearse, and it is not yet known how Mkhabela planned to pass through border controls with the body.
Mpumalanga police commissioner Lieutenant General Semakaleng Manamela commended the partnership displayed by the tracking company and the police that led to the recovery of the stolen trailer.
“Disturbing as it is that the bereaved family had to undergo such a traumatic situation, we cannot guarantee that the trailer was going to come back to the country as it was reported stolen,” she said.
For More News And Analysis About South-Africa Follow Africa-Press
