A trip to a forest to collect firewood turned into a nightmare for one man after he discovered a burnt corpse at KwaGubeshe in Taylor’s Halt, Pietermaritzburg, recently.

The unidentified corpse was found handcuffed and had a cloth inserted in its mouth.

Thanduyise Mncwabe, who found the body, told The Witness he is still in shock, adding: “When I got to the forest, I decided to hunt first before chopping wood.

“While I was moving around in the forest, following my dogs that were chasing a deer, I saw something strange. In my mind I thought it was wood. What confused me is that it was black and there was something shining. So, I moved a little bit closer as I was scared. That is when I discovered that it was a human being and that his hair was burnt and it was his head that was shining.”

Mncwabe says the victim was lying on a dirt road in the forest.

“Shaking as I was, I moved away from there. I saw people loading wood in the car and I went straight to them and I asked them to come with me and witness what I saw,” he adds.

Mncwabe suspects that the dead man may have been one of the 10 men who lost their lives in a horrific attack in Msunduzi location, which is just a few kilometres away from where the corpse was found.

The Witness reported that around 15 alleged whoonga addicts were burnt alive last week Sunday after eight men stormed into a RDP house and started attacking the occupants.

The men reportedly began beating those inside, before forcing them to have sexual intercourse with each other.

When they refused, it is alleged the attackers made them lie down, poured a liquid substance over them and then set the house alight.

Eight men died in the fire, while four victims survived with burn wounds and were rushed to the hospital.

On Monday, two of the men succumbed to the burn injuries, bringing the total deaths to 10.

Police spokesperson Sergeant Sifiso Gwala confirmed that a murder case has been opened for investigation after the discovery in the forest. He added that no one has been arrested yet.

“It is very concerning to see crime incidents continuing to occur. We want [anyone who has] information to assist the police with the investigation.”