According to health authorities, South Africa’s mortuaries are in crisis, with more than 3,000 unclaimed bodies across the country by August 2024. A post recently shared on Facebook claimed that 23 bodies had been stolen over Christmas from a mortuary in Barberton, in the northeast of the country. This is not true; The photo of an overcrowded morgue used in the post was taken at a different facility in 2022. Local police also denied the claims.
“23 dead bodies stolen from Barberton mortuary (sick),” reads the beginning of a Facebook after published on December 29, 2024.
According to the post, which has been shared more than 2,000 times, the bodies disappeared from a mortuary in Barberton over Christmas with a pair of Nike Air Force 1 sneakers.
Mortuary staff “discovered” the alleged theft after the holidays, with CCTV footage allegedly showing the bodies being taken away in two Toyota Quantum minibuses, the claim said.
Screenshot of the fake message, taken on January 2, 2024
Barberton is a town in the Mpumalanga Province of South Africa.
The post includes an image taken in a morgue, showing body bags stacked on shelves and several others on the floor.
Mortuary crisis
South African health officials said there were more than 3,000 not claimed bodies in state mortuaries across the country as of August 2024 (archived here).
The problem was attributed to several factors, including insufficient cemeteries, difficulties in identifying foreigners and delays in collecting DNA samples.
The Parliamentary Health Committee expressed concern about the statistics and the implications of unclaimed bodies for public health and the safety of mortuary staff.
In February 2023, the South African Police Service (SAPS) investigated an isolated case of a desecrated grave and stolen corpse in Limpopo Province (archived here).
However, the claim that bodies have been stolen from a mortuary in Barberton is false.
Unrelated image
To determine the origin of the image used in the claim, AFP carried out Fact Check reverse image search that led to a 2022 news story mentioning it.
South African news publication TimesLIVE published the image on July 27, 2022, reporting that bodies were lying on the floor in the crowded Phoenix forensic mortuary in Durban (archived here).
Screenshot of the 2022 TimesLIVE article taken on January 2, 2024
The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) in KwaZulu-Natal had raised several concerns about the condition of the mortuary at the time.
This included a lack of proper personal protective equipment for workers, no chemicals to disinfect the facility and control odor, defective fly traps and clogged drains in the autopsy room (archived here).
No stolen bodies
Police in Mpumalanga dismissed claims of stolen bodies in a statement dated December 31, 2024 (archived here).
“Rumors are circulating about 23 dead bodies stolen from a mortuary in Barberton. The Office of the SAPS Provincial Commissioner in Mpumalanga would like to state categorically that these claims are false and have no basis in reality. There have been no reports or incidents of bodies being stolen from a mortuary in Barberton or anywhere else in the province.”
Screenshot of the SAPS statement taken on January 2, 2025
Mpumalanga’s acting provincial police commissioner, Major General Zeph Mkhwanazi, warned the public against sharing unverified information on social media.
“Spreading false information can lead to unnecessary panic and fear in the community. We urge the public to report any suspicious activity or crimes to the SAPS so that we can investigate and take appropriate action.”
