Mass burial of unclaimed bodies of Stilfontein illegal miners begins
However, as of Tuesday, 30 bodies that have not been claimed would be buried, said Lekgethwane. 'There are 53 bodies at [a] Klerksdorp mortuary [who are] unclaimed. We bury them as unclaimed people,' he said.
Lekgethwane said the remaining 23 will be buried by the end of June or the beginning of July. It is expected that all the bodies would be buried by the end of July.
Mothibedi said they were working with local municipalities and that the bodies would either be buried in Rustenburg or Madibeng.
North West police spokesperson Brig Sabata Mokgwabone said families were still allowed to come forward for DNA samples but not for identification of the bodies. 'We will do a comparison of the DNA samples but because of the decomposition of the bodies, it is going to be difficult to allow anyone to identify them,' he said.
'Their graves will be marked so that if anyone comes forward and they are positively linked, then we know where to find their bodies. The process will not stop.'
Since the police's Operation Vala Umgodi, 1,826 illegal miners have been arrested at the old Buffelsfontein gold mine in Stilfontein. Of these, 1,128 are from Mozambique, 473 from Zimbabwe, 197 from Lesotho, 26 from South Africa, and one each from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Malawi.
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The Herald
16 hours ago
- The Herald
Mass burial of unclaimed bodies of Stilfontein illegal miners begins
The families are from Mozambique, Lesotho and Zimbabwe, he said. However, as of Tuesday, 30 bodies that have not been claimed would be buried, said Lekgethwane. 'There are 53 bodies at [a] Klerksdorp mortuary [who are] unclaimed. We bury them as unclaimed people,' he said. Lekgethwane said the remaining 23 will be buried by the end of June or the beginning of July. It is expected that all the bodies would be buried by the end of July. Mothibedi said they were working with local municipalities and that the bodies would either be buried in Rustenburg or Madibeng. North West police spokesperson Brig Sabata Mokgwabone said families were still allowed to come forward for DNA samples but not for identification of the bodies. ' We will do a comparison of the DNA samples but because of the decomposition of the bodies, it is going to be difficult to allow anyone to identify them,' he said. 'Their graves will be marked so that if anyone comes forward and they are positively linked, then we know where to find their bodies. The process will not stop.' Since the police's Operation Vala Umgodi, 1,826 illegal miners have been arrested at the old Buffelsfontein gold mine in Stilfontein. Of these, 1,128 are from Mozambique, 473 from Zimbabwe, 197 from Lesotho, 26 from South Africa, and one each from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Malawi. SowetanLIVE
TimesLIVE
a day ago
- TimesLIVE
Mass burial of unclaimed bodies of Stilfontein illegal miners begins
However, as of Tuesday, 30 bodies that have not been claimed would be buried, said Lekgethwane. 'There are 53 bodies at [a] Klerksdorp mortuary [who are] unclaimed. We bury them as unclaimed people,' he said. Lekgethwane said the remaining 23 will be buried by the end of June or the beginning of July. It is expected that all the bodies would be buried by the end of July. Mothibedi said they were working with local municipalities and that the bodies would either be buried in Rustenburg or Madibeng. North West police spokesperson Brig Sabata Mokgwabone said families were still allowed to come forward for DNA samples but not for identification of the bodies. 'We will do a comparison of the DNA samples but because of the decomposition of the bodies, it is going to be difficult to allow anyone to identify them,' he said. 'Their graves will be marked so that if anyone comes forward and they are positively linked, then we know where to find their bodies. The process will not stop.' Since the police's Operation Vala Umgodi, 1,826 illegal miners have been arrested at the old Buffelsfontein gold mine in Stilfontein. Of these, 1,128 are from Mozambique, 473 from Zimbabwe, 197 from Lesotho, 26 from South Africa, and one each from the Democratic Republic of Congo and Malawi.
The Citizen
02-06-2025
- The Citizen
Ermelo police arrest undocumented immigrants during operation
ERMELO – Acting under Operation Vala Umgodi, the police arrested 10 people on May 24 for contravention of the Immigration Act of South Africa. According to Captain Mpho Nonyane, the provincial police spokesperson, officers from the combat and proactive team stopped these individuals during the operation. 'They were arrested because they could not show valid documents allowing them to be in South Africa. They have been charged under the country's Immigration Act,' said Nonyane. The 10 suspects appeared in the Ermelo Magistrate's Court on May 26. Acting provincial commissioner, Major General Dr Zeph Mkhwanazi welcomed the arrests, saying that law enforcement will continue its efforts to stop illegal mining activities. The general also assured the public that more successes are expected as this operation continues to grow in strength. At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
