Durban — A Pietermaritzburg mother is distraught after her son’s body was discovered in a river in Inanda, in Durban on Saturday.
Sipho Makhathini, 22, from Pietermaritzburg, left with his two friends to visit other friends in Inanda during the Easter holidays and never returned home.
Sipho’s mother, Velephi Nene, said his friends returned without Sipho and told her that they left him at a taxi rank in Durban.
“Days went by and Sipho was nowhere to be found, that is when we started to get worried.
We went back to ask his friends and they changed the story and said the last time they saw Sipho was when he was forcefully taken into a car by unknown men after they had an altercation at a friend’s house,” Nene said.
The family went to the nearest police station to report the matter because it was unlike Sipho to disappear without a trace.
Nene said that on Saturday, she received a call from the police informing her that Sipho’s body was found in a river in Inanda.
She said after the phone call she went to a mortuary in Durban to identify the body and discovered that it was indeed his body.
“It was a painful sight to see. It looked like his head had severe injuries and his face was covered with mud. We have no idea what might have happened to Sipho but it appeared as if he was badly beaten before he died because of the head injuries,” said Nene.
She said she had always known Sipho to be an ambitious and goal driven child.
“He passed his matric and was planning to further his studies at the University of Fort Hare next year. His National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) funding was already approved.
“His murder came as a shock because he got along with everyone and we do not have a clue on who might want him dead,” said Nene.
Police comment will be added once received.
Daily News