Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
A SHOCKING mix-up at Nyaradzo Funeral Services in Mutare has left a Chipinge family devastated after they unknowingly buried the wrong body — that of a 100-year-old woman — instead of their 85-year-old relative.
The error only came to light when relatives of the centenarian were handed the body of the 85-year-old, prompting their immediate refusal to collect it.
Family members of the 85-year-old had reportedly raised concerns before the burial, noting changes in the deceased’s complexion.
However, funeral staff allegedly dismissed these worries, attributing the differences to mortuary cosmetology and extended freezer storage. The burial proceeded despite the objections.
The revelation has sparked grief and anger among the bereaved family and the wider community, who are demanding accountability from the funeral service provider.
When contacted for comment, Nyaradzo Funeral Services regional manager, Mr Dereck Ndebele, declined to address the issue.
“I do not think I am the right person to talk about that,” he said.
The incident has left both families shaken, raising serious questions about procedures and oversight in funeral management.
However, The Manica Post has learnt that on Friday at around 11am at Checheche graveyard, in Chipinge South Constituency, the Muzwati family wrongly buried the remains of Mbuya Eddina Gwavava Mufambi (100), who lived at House Number 10093, Greenside Extension in Mutare, instead of burying the remains of their relative, Mbuya Nerita Muyambo (85), of Checheche Town Centre, Chipinge, who had passed away after a long illness in Mutare.
Mbuya Muyambo had suffered a stroke in September 2025, and her condition deteriorated until her death on December 31, 2025, while receiving treatment at a relative’s home in Mutare.
On the same day, Nyaradzo Funeral Services collected her remains and took them to their mortuary in the city.
On New Year’s Day at around 8am, Nyaradzo Funeral Services hearse driver, Mr Munyaradzi Nyagweta, and a mortician, whose identity has not been disclosed, mistakenly identified and loaded the remains of Mbuya Gwavava into the hearse, thinking they were those of Mbuya Muyambo.
The remains were then taken to Checheche Growth Point, Chipinge, where they were received by the Muzwati family, and buried the following day at Checheche graveyard.
The mix-up was eventually discovered last Saturday during a body viewing at the Nyaradzo Funeral Services Mutare branch, prompting officials to inform Ms Susan Mukoyi, the daughter of the late Mbuya Muyambo.
The late Mbuya Gwavava’s remains were supposed to have been buried at Muzondi Village, Chief Marange, Mutare Rural District.
A report was made at ZRP Chisumbanje by Ms Mukoyi, who was accompanied by Nyaradzo Funeral Services manager, Mr Lazarus Bvuma, on Monday.
The two were facilitating the preliminary processes for the exhumation of the interred remains.
Former Chipinge South Constituency legislator, Cde Enock Porusingazi, who attended the late Mbuya Muyambo’s funeral, said some of her relatives had questioned the identity of the corpse, but Nyaradzo Funeral Services staff insisted that they had done their job correctly.
“The close family members actually raised an objection after body viewing, but it fell on deaf ears. People questioned the change of complexion. The Nyaradzo staff member, who accompanied the body, was called in and remained adamant that it was the right body. Others were of the opinion that her face had changed complexion because of the time she spent in the freezers as well as the make-up that they had applied to deceased when leaving the mortuary,” he said.
Cde Porusingazi said the whole community was disturbed after learning that they had buried the wrong corpse.
“We are deeply saddened as a community by the lack of professionalism that was exhibited in this case. As clients, we expect due diligence in the execution of such tasks because such costly mistakes encompass a lot of cultural, religious, social, as well as economic challenges. Imagine spending the whole evening at a funeral on a night vigil, people giving testimonies and memorising totems, as well as conducting rituals for a wrong body. This is just unacceptable,” he said.
Apparently, the relatives of both deceased persons were not forthcoming when contacted for comment.
The centenarian family representative, Mr Stanley Mufambi, spent the greater part of Monday morning pledging to meet and discuss the matter with this reporter, but later becoming irate when asked for comment.
“Where did you get my number? I said, who gave you my number? In fact, I am not going to entertain you any further until you first tell me who gave you my number,” fumed Mr Mufambi.
However, revealing the identity of a source of information is a cardinal sin, according to the ethics of the journalism profession.
Meanwhile, the process to exhume the body wrongly buried in Chipinge are already underway.
Chipinge District Development Coordinator, Mr William Mashava confirmed that the exhumation process has started.
“Preparatory processes are ongoing. Kindly confirm with Mr Bvuma of Nyaradzo,” he said.
A Government mortician, who declined to be named, expressed shock at the mistake, citing the rigorous verification process involved at the mortuary.
“I think this could be sheer negligence because we have strict, meticulous verification processes that we go through, together with the relatives of the deceased, before a body is issued out of the mortuary. Added to that, we also use name tags that are specifically tied to a body as it comes into the mortuary, therefore to think that those tags can be exchanged is just unimaginable,” she said.
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