Johannesburg - Police in Wepener are searching for the family of a male teenager whose naked body was found floating in a dam on Tuesday. Free State police spokesperson Detective Sergeant Samuel Ntuli said the body was discovered by workers at the nearby water service company who then contacted them.
“Police found the body of a teenager floating in a dam near Wepener without any clothes on," Ntuli said. "The gruesome discovery occurred on Tuesday in the afternoon by workers at Welbedacht dam and they immediately alerted the police. On arrival at the scene, it was discovered that the body had been in water for a few weeks.”
Ntuli said they were still trying to locate the family of the teenager who is aged between 14 and 16.
However, he said they have also received reports from Lesotho that a teenager there drowned two weeks ago. “We are not sure if the body belongs to the family in Lesotho. However, there is a valley from Lesotho that's coming to South Africa."
Ntuli said it was possible that the teenager may have drowned in Lesotho and that the body may have been carried by the water all the way to South Africa. "However, we are still awaiting the family to come and identify the body and have already communicated with officials on that side,” said Ntuli.
The body has been taken to a government mortuary and police have opened an inquest pending post mortem results.
Ntuli added that more details about the identity of the deceased and his cause of death will be communicated as they emerge.