In a statement on 3 August, the South African Police Service (SAPS) announced that 28-year-old Nhlanhla Mkhabela would remain in custody after being pulled over last week on suspicion of a stolen trailer, and subsequently arrested when officers searched the trailer and discovered a corpse in a coffin inside it.
Mkhabela made a brief appearance in Nkomazi Magistrate’s Court on Friday, 28 July, and was remanded in custody to await his next court hearing.
A shocking discovery
Mkhabela was arrested with a taxi full of passengers on Thursday, 27 July 2023 at about 19h00, after a tracking company alerted Mpumalanga police about a stolen trailer that was picked up on the N4 near Malelane, a popular route for motorists traveling to and from neighbourging Mozambique.
The trailer was allegedly stolen in Johannesburg, Gauteng, said Brigadier S. Mohlala of the Mpumalanga SAPS.
“Police intercepted the taxi. When the trailer was searched, police made a shocking discovery when it was found loaded with a corpse in the coffin,” said Mohlala.
According to the reporting officers, the deceased was being transported to Mozambique for burial. Following the arrest, arrangements were immediately made with the local funeral parlour for the corpse to be moved to its final destination.
“Mkhabela was arrested for possession of suspected stolen property and appeared in Nkomazi Magistrate’s Court on Friday where he was remanded in custody for bail application scheduled for Monday 07 August 2023,” said Mohlala.
The provincial commissioner of the SAPS in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Daphney Manamela, commended the partnership displayed by the tracking company and the police that led to the recovery of the stolen trailer and the discovery of the corpse in transit.
“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,” said Manamela.
Keyword: South African police catches taxi driver towing dead body in stolen trailer to Mozambique