FSG MUST PAY!
The family of a Moshupa man, Kagiso Pitso (38), whose body allegedly disappeared from Lyn’s Mortuary in Thamaga before being mistakenly cremated, is considering legal action against funeral services giant, FSG Limited.
Speaking to The Midweek Sun on Tuesday, Kagiso’s uncle, Mothibedi Pitso, said the ordeal has left them traumatised, and they believe FSG should compensate them for the emotional pain caused by the incident.
“We are in pain. This issue has traumatised us. We do not know what to think. To this day, we do not have an explanation of what really transpired. This is why we are contemplating taking the legal route. Perhaps they will be able to tell the courts what really transpired,” he said.
However, the family has not yet decided on a specific compensation amount, with Pitso saying they hope their lawyers will advise them on an appropriate figure that reflects the emotional toll the ordeal has taken.
He noted that the family’s anguish centres on the fact that what was eventually buried was ashes with no DNA, leaving them uncertain whether they were those of Kagiso.
“All we buried were ashes. We do not know what they are of. We are not even sure they are those of a human being as claimed,” Pitso said.
He said the family could not simply remain silent over what happened, arguing that Kagiso’s body had been entrusted to the mortuary after the family followed the required procedures when admitting him.
“There is no way we can remain silent about such an incident. Clearly, something was not done right. We followed all the processes that needed to be followed when admitting a dead person into the morgue, but for a body to disappear just like that under their watch is traumatising,” he said.
According to the Uncle, when Kagiso died following a short illness, his body was taken to Lyn’s Mortuary in Thamaga, where the family expected it to remain until burial.
But when relatives arrived at the mortuary to dress him ahead of his planned burial, they were met with an empty mortuary tray.
The family was subsequently informed that another family had collected a body from the mortuary and proceeded to bury it. They were later told that the body had been cremated and that the remains buried at Gakgatla were ashes.
Authorities exhumed the ashes from Gakgatla for testing, and days later, the family was told that it was not possible to determine whether they belonged to Kagiso or not. The Pitsos then decided to bury the ashes for a sense of closure that has since eluded them.