A Nkambule family from Mavula was left stunned when they discovered during a night vigil that the corpse in the coffin was not that of their late relative, but of an elderly woman said to be from Dvokolwako.
Lindiwe Ndwandwe-Nkambule was supposed to be buried yesterday morning at her marital home in Mavula. According to a family member, the discovery was made during the viewing of the corpse at around 11pm on Saturday. Upon discovering the mishap, the family quickly contacted Thuya Funeral Parlour, where the corpse had been kept. After further questioning, it emerged that the corpse had been swapped.
The coffin was returned to the parlour on the same night, but the family found no other corpse in the morgue.
A thorough check later confirmed that Ndwandwe-Nkambule’s remains had been mistakenly exchanged with those of the woman from Dvokolwako and had already been buried there.
By morning, when the family was supposed to conduct the burial, they reported the matter to Buhleni Police Station for guidance. It is alleged that Tswelopelo Funeral Services mistakenly provided the wrong corpse.
The family expressed disbelief, noting that the two corpses were visibly different in appearance. They questioned how the other family failed to notice the mistake. Reports suggest that in Dvokolwako, some relatives raised concerns during the viewing, but the funeral proceeded regardless. Both families were expected to approach the High Court to seek an order for exhumation.
Meanwhile, members of the Dvokolwako family admitted that they too suspected that the corpse was not theirs. Gugu Dlamini explained that when they went to Thuya Funeral Parlour on Friday to prepare their grandmother’s body, they were unable to see her properly as the body had already been cleaned. At the chapel, they only saw the face, dressed in clothes they had provided, which led them to believe it was their relative.
ALSO READ | Russia proposes visa-free travel for Emaswati
Dlamini added that even a child remarked during the funeral that it was the wrong body. “We also had suspicions because the corpse was light in complexion, while our grandmother was not,” she said.
The incident has left both families distressed and facing financial strain, as conducting another funeral would be costly given the expenses already incurred.
Meanwhile, Thuya Funeral Parlour has distanced itself from the wrongful identification of the two corpses. In a statement, the parlour said both families acknowledged that the error occurred during the identification process at family level.
“Upon notification, Thuya Funeral Parlour acted immediately by retrieving the affected remains, engaging the police and convening a joint meeting with all parties involved,” the statement read in part.
The parlour further stated that it had followed all statutory and operational procedures, including correct tagging, registration and formal identification of the deceased by the respective families prior to release.
“There is no dispute between Thuya Funeral Parlour and the affected families. The matter is being resolved respectfully, transparently and in accordance with the law.”
The parlour added that all parties had agreed to proceed with a lawful, court-supervised exhumation process, with full consent of the families and under police oversight.
On that note, Tswelopelo Funeral Services Public Relations Officer Bongani Ncongwane said they only rented the morgue from Thuya Funeral Parlour and therefore distanced themselves from the swapping of the corpses. He said they were only responsible for the burial, maintaining that the wrong identification occurred at family level.
Ncongwane added that, as a company, they made themselves available the moment the issue was raised and were satisfied that both families had reached common ground and were awaiting a court order for the exhumation of the wrongfully buried corpse.
