SAPS lags in the identification of women’s bodies lying in mortuaries

26 July 2018

Of the 47 unidentified female bodies lying in state mortuaries across Gauteng, the majority have not been checked against the list of missing persons by the South African Police Service.

Twelve of these bodies have been lying in mortuaries for over 4 months and a number of those for 9 to 12 months.  The rest are anything from a few days to 4 months.

These figures were revealed in questions asked in the Gauteng Legislature by Gauteng Health MEC, Gwen Ramokgopa.

This means that at least 12 families are unaware that a family member who may have been reported missing to the SAPS, is lying in a mortuary.

It is inexcusable that the SAPS are not doing their job and expediting the identification of bodies through fingerprinting and through comparison with lists of missing persons.

I will be asking further questions of the SAPS to establish whether there is a consolidated list of missing persons in Gauteng or only lists for every station area?

A consolidated list that is updated weekly should be available as missing persons are not always found in the area they went missing.

Not treating these women and their families as a priority denies them their dignity in death.

Issued by Kate Lorimer, DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Community Safety, 26 July 2018