Guard talks about gruesome discovery

Mr Alfeus Gumbi, a security guard in Kensington, discovered the skull in a drain at the corner of Kitchener Avenue and Lancaster Street on Sunday last week.

“It was raining and I was patrolling the area. I saw what looked like a human skull stuck in the stormwater drain. I also saw other remains in the drain close to Lancaster Street and Cambridge Road. I was horrified. I could not believe what I was looking at,” he said.

He called Mr Murphy from No Crime. He arrived with Captain Leslie Bowler from the Cleveland SAPS. “They confirmed what I had seen. Authorities were notified about the gruesome find,” said Mr Gumbi.

The Cleveland SAPS responded and cordoned off the area. Emergency Management Services, Gauteng Forensic Pathology Services and the dog unit also responded.

The skull was removed from the drain and authorities tried to retrieve the other remains that were discovered.

Captain Bowler said firefighters were also called in to help.

“It was difficult to remove the other remains because the drain kept filling up with water due to the rain. We eventually pulled out the remains. It was skeletal remains from the hips down. We did not find anything else,” he said.

The search was called off and resumed the next day.

“We were unsuccessful. We will have to see if the rest of the remains come up somewhere else with the rains we are experiencing. It could go down to Bruma Lake. It may get stuck in the reeds,” said Capt Bowler.

He said the authorities believe the human remains may be a male in his mid-20s.

“They were able to establish this by examining the jaw bone. Pants and shoes were also found on the lower part of the skeleton. However, further investigations are being conducted to confirm details. We are also investigating the possibility of the remains being that of a person who was reported missing a few months ago,” said Capt Bowler.

Constable Mpho Mashakane, the Cleveland SAPS communications officer, said the SAPS is still waiting for the forensic results. “This will take about a month to complete. Forensic results will reveal whether the person was murdered or not,” she said.

Explaining the process to determine more details about the remains, Mr Simon Zwane, the spokesperson for the Gauteng Health Department said, “The period to determine the identity of the deceased depends on the condition of the remains, the information obtained from the investigating officer and tests to be performed.

“Anthropological evaluation is conducted to determine the gender of the remains.

“Identification is done at various stages. With a fresh body, a visual and fingerprint identification is conducted. However, with decomposed human remains, an anthropological assessment and evaluation is performed. The condition of the teeth and the muscle attachment to skull or bones are used to determine how old the skeleton is.”

Speaking about the incident after he had calmed down, Mr Gumbi said, “It was the first time I saw something like that. I have been a security guard in this area for about 10 years. I have seen a lot, like robberies, people who were hurt and deaths, but never something so gruesome. There were several incidents where I saw people in shock but never as much as the shock experienced by residents on Sunday last week. I was shaken and did not go to work for a few days. I could not eat and was so relieved when I went home,” he said.

When he went home, the first thing Mr Gumbi did was hug his children and wife.

“People at the scene were great to me. They calmed me down. I was, however, so grateful to be back home,” he said.

At the time of going to print, the rest of the remains had not been found.