Missing 77-year-old Tshatshi Maponya, a devoted gardener and man of faith, was found peacefully under a tree after walking away from his vehicle on his way home from church.

According to his daughter Mpho, Maponya was found on Monday under a tree near Mathibestad, a town in Bojanala District Municipality in the North West.

Herders found him after he went missing on April 20, 2025; he vanished while driving home from church in Soshanguve, Pretoria.

He had been driving the same route for years but had recently started getting lost along the way, raising growing concerns about his mental state.

“He was lost, shame — so he walked through the bush until he couldn’t walk any further, lay under a tree, and passed away peacefully.”

She said her dad spent his life gardening and he was a man of God.

“Very devoted to his faith. An angel on earth.

“He died in nature under a tree. What a beautiful send-off. He lay there like a King. Clean as he always was. Untouched.

“My dad literally walked home. That man could walk, you hear me? He would always walk very long distances.

“So really, much as his loss saddens us. He died doing what he loved and in his natural habitat.”

Maponya is survived by his wife, 69-year-old Dikeledi Wilhemina Maponya, and their three daughters: Priscilla Mokone (48), Kagiso Maponya (45), and Mpho Maponya (35). He also leaves behind six grandchildren.

Also read: Missing Pretoria teenager found unharmed

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