Durban - The Jozini community are living in fear, following the gruesome discovery of human remains, believed to be linked to a muthi killing.
The discovery was made by community members in the early hours of Sunday morning, in the Mbundwini area.
Jozini mayor Delani Mabika said it was suspected that the remains, which included dismembered body parts, were related to a muthi killing and said he was concerned with the growing number of such cases in the area.
“I went to the site myself and am still shocked by what I saw. I could not sleep on (Sunday) night,” said Mabika.
“So far we have not been able to locate the rest of the body,” he said.
Mabika said seeing that the body had been dismembered, it appeared that the person had been killed for muthi.
“It is quite shocking and depressing that, in this day and age, there are people who still believe they could kill others and use their bodies for muthi,” he said.
Mabika said this was not the first time that a body had been dismembered in that area.
“This is of concern, all indications are that this barbaric behaviour is growing. In the past three years, this is the fourth incident where a body has been dismembered.
“A body of a disabled person was discovered dumped in a nearby forest with missing parts. A body of a university student was also discovered - we identified the person by a student card, and a school teacher disappeared, and has not been found,” he said.
Mabika said a traditional imbizo to discuss the matter was scheduled for Wednesday.
Mary de Haas, a KZN violence monitor, said the issue of muthi killings were common in the province and not a lot was being done to deal with
it.
“The consequences should be clear that, if you are caught doing this, you will be severely punished.”
She said it was difficult to stop those who engaging in this practice because they believed in muthi derived from human remains.
Lieutenant-Colonel Thulani Zwane said an inquest docket had been opened at Ndumo police station after human body parts were
found.
“An appeal is made to all members of the public, who can assist the police in their investigations, to urgently contact Ndumo police.”