Thabo Dlamini (20) from Zonkizizwe has been found, five days  after he drowned on Saturday afternoon. He allegedly lost life trying to save a man who was chasing after a criminal. However, no one saw Thabo getting into the water, as he was assisting from outside.

HUNT FOR A CRIMINAL

Speaking to Zimoja, Thabo's grandfather Johannes Dlamini said that the community had been chasing after a criminal who stole clothes from one of their neighbours.He said they went to the suspect's house and found a suitcase filled with with people's belongings. "We wanted him to go and tell the community where he got all those things and for owners to take them back but he refused. The whole time he had a screw driver in his hand and when I tried to take it from him, one of the guys from the community beat him with a sjambok. He jumped and managed to escape," said Dlamini.                                                                                                                                      He added that the suspect ran and the community followed him but when he realised that there was nowhere else to run to, he jumped into the water. "After the suspect jumped in and swam across, two guys followed  him but they didn't catch him.  Out of frustration that the suspect was laughing at the community, a 50-year-old man jumped in to try and catch him," he said. He added that it seemed like the old man struggled to swim across and that's when Thabo tried to assist him. "it's funny because no one saw Thabo jump into the water, he had been guiding the old man on what to do from outside. We were distracted when we were instructing one of the guys who had jumped in to leave the suspect because it was dangerous and come back."

BODIES DISCOVERED

It wasn't long that they noticed that the old man had disappeared into the water and they didn't know where Thabo went.  "During that chaos Thabo's grandmother asked me where he was and I said he was among the crowd. Even the community members thought so too because no one saw him getting into the water. We searched for him with no luck and then we called the police who told us it was too late and dangerous to search the river but they will go on Sunday morning." Dlamini said the police  searched daily but only on Wednesday they received a call from the police to come identify bodies that they found in the river.We did so and indeed it was Thabo, to this day I see people coming in and out of my house but it hasn't sunk in."

HE HAD DREAMS

Dlamini told Zimoja that Thabo was part of matric 2022 and had passed with a Bachelor. "He got delayed with his studies because he went to traditional initiation school and  graduated in 2018. He was  a qualified healer and had aspirations to go to tertiary. We are going to miss his quiet and shy spirit. He was very respectful and loved helping people a lot," concluded Dlamini.

HEAVY RAINS

Ekurhuleni EMS spokesperson William Ntladi said the men were reported missing on Saturday. After four days of searching, the men ? one in his 20s and the other in his 50s ? were recovered from the Natalspruit River, near Zonkizizwe, on Wednesday morning. Ntaldi said the river was overflowing due to heavy rains in the area, and the bodies had been recovered two or three kilometres away from the point of drowning. Reports from the scene indicate that the two victims had been pursuing people accused of breaking into a home in the area. According to reports, the suspected robbers had fled by swimming across the river, but when the victims followed, they were swept away in the strong current, he said."