Police exhume body after family claims wrong corpse from mortuary

Two Gweru families will today exhume a body of a deceased relative for reburial after one of the families mistakenly claimed a wrong corpse at the Gweru Provincial Hospital mortuary for burial.The other family discovered that they had collected a wrong body on burial day during viewing.

It was later learnt that their relative had already been buried by the other family.

Midlands Provincial police spokesperson Inspector Emmanuel Mhoko said the two families will meet today at Mutasa Cemetry where the other body will be exhumed.

"Circumstances are that relatives of one of the deceased, Takudzwa Chipadza went to Gweru Provincial Hospital last week and collected the body of Courage Sibanda.

Sibanda's relatives then later went to the hospital and erroneously collected Chipadza's body.

"Both deceased were victims of murder," said Insp Mahoko.

He said Chipadza's relatives buried Sibanda's body in error, assuming the corpse belonged to their relatives only for Sibanda's relatives to realise on burial day that they had a wrong body.

"They then approached the hospital where the error was noted hence the two families are today exhuming Sibanda's body so that they can swap the bodies for reburial," he said.