Johannesburg - A thin foil sheet was the only thing that shielded the naked body of a man who was found on a cold, wet street in the Joburg CBD on Wednesday morning.
Occasional gusts of wind would blow the covering off, revealing the man’s legs and left arm as he lay on the corner of Commissioner and Frazer streets.
He was stretched out on the far right lane parallel to a dilapidated building covered in graffiti and surrounded by litter,with the stench of urine filling the air as a drizzle fell.
Police officers and security guards on the scene tried to block the body from view as onlookers gathered on the busy street. A section of the road was closed off.
Motorists and passengers looked out of windows as taxis and buses ferrying them to work slowed down.
Police spokesman Warrant Officer Xoli Mbele said the man, who is believed to be a vagrant between 28 and 30, died of natural causes.
“We don’t suspect any foul play and the man was not found with any wounds.”
An inquest docket has been opened.
A homeless man who sleeps on the pavement opposite to where the body was found, said when he woke up early and found the body there.
“He was there, naked. The police had already arrived. I don’t know him,” he said.
“He looks like he stays on the streets and he’s also very unhealthy looking, he’s very skinny and you can see his ribs sticking out.”
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