South African Police Probe Death of 20 Suspected Illegal Miners

The South African police have began investigation after 20 unidentified bodies were found in Orkney- a gold mining town.

The bodies which were found wrapped in white plastic bags are suspected by the police to be illegal miners.

Report indicates that the bodies had severe burns which has called for autopsies to be done on them in a bid to identify exactly what killed them.

According to the police in a statement on Wednesday, “all the deceased are suspected to be illegal miners commonly known as ‘zama zamas’ operating in obsolete shafts in Orkney and Stilfontein.”

The bodies were found in two different places. Five of the bodies were discovered outside an old unused mine shaft in Lawrence Park on Tuesday and the next day 14 more of the bodies were found at Ariston Road near a Railway line.

According to the South African police the incident could be associated with a viral video which stormed social media of which a man was seen pleading for assistance at a mine shaft.

Source: BBC

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