“This Is Terrible”: Kagiso Community Catches Alleged Sangoma Exhuming Body in Cemetery, SA Outraged

• An alleged sangoma was caught red-handed by Kagiso community members after apparently exhuming a grave and removing a casket
• The dramatic moment was filmed and posted on Facebook, showing the man cuffed and ready to be taken to the police station
• Enraged South Africans slammed the violation, with family members of those buried at the cemetery expressing deep anxiety over their loved ones' graves
• Briefly News spoke with Cape Town traditional healer Mkhulu Thobile about the shocking arrest of an alleged sangoma exhuming a body

A shocking video showing the moment a group of furious Kagiso community members cornered an alleged traditional healer at a Johannesburg graveyard has sparked widespread outrage online. The incident was shared on Facebook by user Kamogelo Kgoedi-kk-quotes on 31 May 2026.

The disturbing clip shows a man lying face down on the ground, handcuffed, while surrounded by a crowd of angry residents. The woman filming the scene explains that the suspect, believed to be an illegal foreign traditional healer from abroad, had been caught red-handed vandalising a grave. The scene reveals a dug-up grave, where the tombstone and the underlying casket have already been pulled out underneath.

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Kagiso residents catch an alleged traditional healer in the act

According to the woman, the targeted grave belonged to the Plaatjie family. Facebook user Kamogelo Kgoedi-kk-quotes’ clip details how community members noticed suspicious activity at the cemetery and caught the alleged sangoma in the middle of his bizarre and illegal ritual.

Watch the Facebook reel here.

Respect for the dead and the protection of sacred spaces

We sat down with Mkhulu Thobile to discuss the cultural laws surrounding burial sites and how real traditional healers view the violation of graves.

The team asked what his thoughts were about seeing the alleged healer caught exhuming a body in Kagiso. He responded:

“It is absolutely disgusting and a total disgrace. True traditional healers respect the dead and our ancestors. What this person did is not traditional healing; it is pure witchcraft and a massive crime against our culture.”

We asked why desecrating a grave is considered such a severe offence in African tradition. He shared:

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“The cemetery is a sacred resting place. Once a person is laid to rest, their spirits join the ancestors. Disturbed graves disrupt that peace and can bring a curse and bad luck to the family and the entire community.”

When asked how people can tell the difference between genuine and those practising dark rituals. The traditional healer said:

“A real healer works in light to cure illnesses, bring peace, and protect families. We do not operate secretly in graveyards or exhume body parts. If a healer asks for anything harmful or strange, stay away from them.”

Mzansi is outraged by the graveyard scene

Residents expressed horror that someone could disturb the peaceful resting place of the deceased, leaving the Plaatjie family's grave completely exposed and vandalised. Many pointed out that foreign nationals committing such crimes are responsible for giving law-abiding foreign nationals a bad name within local communities. Others with family members buried in the Kagiso graveyard expressed deep fear that the suspect might have targeted their own family plots before being caught.

User @Sabelo Sonny Jennings said:

"My mom's twin is buried there, hope he didn't try her grave this idiot."

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User @Tumelo Kganare shared:

"Even the dead are not safe."

User @Emmanuel Macire added:

"These people are disgusting! In the cemetery, doing what?"

User @Lelentle Mabogoane commented:

"He will go to prison, and the state will still spend R500 every day to feed, clothe, accommodate and educate him. With the citizens' tax money."

User @Naushina Khan said:

"Masego Manyaapelo, this is terrible. Eish."

User @Lumumba Zotho shared:

"We are not surprised that it is one of the reasons they are here. Human trafficking, muti murders, robberies, the manufacture and selling of drugs are not taken seriously by the government."

3 Briefly News graveyard-related articles

• A content creator jokingly confronted her Christian ancestors at their graves, asking them why they were not blessing her with the lottery winnings or a husband, sparking a massive online debate.
• A content creator shared a video of a group of young men and women pouring alcohol on a tombstone after the funeral service, startling many social media users.
• A social media user filmed a homeless man sleeping in a sheltered grave in Zwelitsha, near King William's Town, leaving social media users in stitches.

Source: Briefly News