Body of 17-Year-Old who Disappeared During Vaal River Trip found

• Thomas Junior Sithole, who went missing after a trip on the Vaal River, went horribly wrong, as the South African Police Service continues to search for him, was found dead
• His family is unsettled by how the police were not immediately notified after he disappeared near Stonehaven on 9 January 2025
• The parents also questioned why the parents who were present on the boat allowed access to alcohol despite assertions that no alcohol was present

For seven years, Tebogo Mokwena, Briefly News’ Deputy Head of Current Affairs, South Africa, covered a range of topics, including accidents, fires, outbreaks, nature, weather, and natural disaster-related incidents, at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News.

EMFULENI, GAUTENG— The family of a 17-year-old teenager who disappeared during an outing on the Vaal River near Stonehaven resort in Vereeniging, Gauteng, is struggling to accept that their son went missing. Thomas Junior Sithole disappeared while on a trip on 9 January 2026, and his body was found on 12 January.

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News24 reported that Sithole disappeared while on a short excursion, with one of the boys' fathers driving the boat. The group stopped to purchase drinks before continuing. The passengers took turns riding a jet ski. They realised that Thomas was no longer on the boat when they drove off. One of the parents, then. However, Sithole's family believed that there were inconsistencies in the story.

Sithole's family has questions

Sibongile Radebe, Sithole's cousin, said that the South African Police Service was informed of the incident hours after it took place. She added that the Vanderbijlpark SAPS allegedly informed them that the case fell under the jurisdiction of Sasolburg, Free State.

When they arrived on the scene the following day, the police did not communicate with them. When they reached out to the Sasolburg SAPS, the police tried to find out if a case had been opened. The case was reportedly formally opened on Saturday, the following day. Radebe, though, believes that the precious time that could have been used to find Thomas was wasted.

Family describes Thomas in warm terms

Sithole said Thomas was popular at school and had a beautiful spirit.

"Thomas was a gorgeous child. He loved everyone, and everyone loved him," she said.

Thomas's incident is one of several drowning incidents that have taken place since the festive season. Five people were swept away at Pennington Beach in KwaZulu-Natal on 1 January 2026. One person was rescued, one body was recovered, and three people remained missing.

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One of the victims was a matriculant who had visited his cousin in Pinetown. His father pleaded with the authorities to locate his body so the family could provide him with a proper burial.

Eastern Cape man swept away by rip current

In a related article, Briefly News reported that a 23-year-old man from Gqeberha, Eastern Cape, went missing after a rip current swept him away. The incident happened at Bluewater Bay on 2 January 2026.

Rescuers were alerted that a drowning had taken place before 7 pm. Rescuers were dispatched to the scene where he and his sister were caught in a rip current. A fisherman rescued his sister. He, however, was not found.

Source: Briefly News