UPDATE: Body found by tourists near Tugela River Mouth

While the Hawks and Newark SAPS await the DNA test results of the body that washed up near the Tugela River Mouth, a Witbank couple who were on holiday in the area revealed that they and not a fisherman stumbled upon the body.

The body could be that of missing botanist Rodney Saunders (74), who is believed to have been murdered, together with his wife Rachel, and had their bodies dumped into the Tugela River.

The question as to whether the badly decomposed body could be that of Rodney’s is just one among a long list which forms part of an ongoing investigation into determining what exactly happened to the Saunders couple.

Police previously reported that the body had been found on February 28 by a local fisherman in the region of the Tugela River Mouth, however Marinda Badenhorst challenged the information provided by police and said her, together with her husband, came across the body on March 28.

Also read: Search continues for bodies in ISIS attack

“We left Ballito on the day (March 28) and decided to go to the Tugela River Mouth to hopefully see sharks, as we heard the river came down, something worth seeing as we don’t get to see that a lot.

“As we left Ballito we saw newspaper headlines on the street poles about two people who had been missing for seven weeks.

“We parked the car near the lighthouse and walked to the mouth. We were actually a bit scared as it wasn’t busy there. Only a few locals and people who seemed to be cleaning the beach were around.

“The sea was muddy brown and the beach full of debris from the river coming down.

“As we got close to the mouth, taking a lot of pictures along the walk, my husband pointed out a body lying among the reeds – I almost stepped on it.

“The body was lying on its left side and was badly decomposed. It looked like the body of a male as it had a full length denim on with a belt and a piece of the underpants sticking out.

“It did not smell at that time and we could not see the feet as they was under sand and debris.”

At this stage Marinda and her husband, Glen, approached a local fisherman near the river mouth and asked if there was a police station around because they had just found a body.

Also read: ISIS suspect was a resident of Umdloti

“The fisherman said he was on holiday but would tell the owners of the B&B where he was staying.

“He also said there were two people missing and hopefully it would be the body of one of them.

“He took our numbers and said he would phone us when they get hold of the police.

“We were almost halfway back to our car when my phone rang and the guy told us that his wife got a policeman at the service station and they were on their way.

“A policeman in uniform arrived a short while later and took down our numbers and address and told us they would contact us if they needed anything else,” Marinda said.

Meanwhile KZN Hawks Spokesperson, Captain Simphiwe Mhlongo, said they could not comment on speculation over the identity of the body until the necessary investigations had been carried out.

Do you want to receive news alerts via WhatsApp? Send us a WhatsApp message (not an sms) with your name and surname to 061 718 4438.

Please read our WhatsApp broadcast list disclaimer.
Join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram