Nelspruit: 02 August 2023 - The taxi driver was remanded in custody after his brief appearance in Nkomazi Magistrate's Court on Friday 28 July 2023. Nhlanhla Mkhabela (28) was arrested with a taxi full of passengers on Thursday 27 July 2023 at about 19:00 after the tracking company alerted police about the stolen trailer which was picked up on the N4 at Malelane. The trailer was allegedly stolen in Johannesburg, Gauteng Province. Police intercepted the taxi. When the trailer was searched, police made a shocking discovery when it was found loaded with a corpse in the coffin.
According to information, the deceased was transported to Mozambique for burial. Mkhabela was arrested for possession of suspected stolen property and appeared in Nkomazi Magistrate's Court on Friday where he was remanded in custody for bail application scheduled for Monday 07 August 2023. Arrangements were made with the local funeral parlour for the corpse to be transported to its final destination.
The Provincial Commissioner of the SAPS in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Daphney Manamela commended the partnership displayed by the tracking company and the police that led to the recovery of the stolen trailer. "Disturbing as it is that the bereaved family had to undergo such a traumatic situation, we cannot guarantee that the trailer was going to come back to the country as it was reported stolen," said the General.