IN a bizarre and shocking incident, a family of Machobeni was left devastated after discovering that their relative’s corpse had been mistakenly collected from a South African mortuary and buried by another family.
Mourners had gathered in large numbers for the funeral of Eric Mamba, which was scheduled for Sunday following a night vigil. Machobeni is a community in the Shiselweni region.
However, events took a dramatic turn on Saturday evening when word reached the grieving family that those who had gone to collect the corpse from a mortuary in Piet Retief, South Africa, had encountered a problem as the corpse was missing.
It later emerged that two bodies at the mortuary had been registered under the same first name, Eric, but with different surnames. One was Eric Mamba from Eswatini while the other belonged to a family from Piet Retief.
It is alleged that the Piet Retief family collected the wrong corpse — that of Eric Mamba — and proceeded to bury it, unaware of the mix-up.
As mourners filled the homestead for the night vigil, disbelief spread when the announcement was made that the funeral would no longer proceed as planned, because the corpse could not be located.
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With all funeral arrangements already in place, including a prepared grave and a tent full of mourners, confusion and disappointment gripped those in attendance. Many who had travelled from distant areas were forced to stay overnight before returning home.
The deceased’s younger brother, Sipho Mamba, said the shocking development disrupted the entire funeral programme.
“The funeral was meant to begin with a night vigil before burial on Sunday. Everyone was disturbed to learn what had happened. It was discovered that my brother’s corpse had been mistakenly collected and buried by another family in Piet Retief,” he said.
He explained that family members who had gone to the mortuary immediately realised they had been shown the wrong corpse and raised concerns with staff.
“After checking the records, it was discovered that another family had earlier collected the wrong corpse. It is still unclear how such a mix-up occurred,” he said.
Mamba added that the incident raised serious concerns, as the other family proceeded with the burial without noticing the mistake.
