Fears Brit vacationer lacking in South Africa killed for physique components for use in witchcraft
Lorna McSorley, 71, vanished five days into a package holiday in September while on a walk alone in Mkhuze in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal Province and has not been seen since
Lorna McSorley, 71, vanished five days into a package holiday
A Brit holidaymaker from who vanished while on a walk in South Africa is feared to have been murdered for her body parts to be used in witchcraft.
Lorna McSorley, 71, went missing five days into a package holiday at the end of September while on a solo walk in Mkhuze in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal Province – and hasn’t been seen since. Four months later, detectives in northern KwaZulu-Natal have admitted they have no fresh leads.
However, accounts from local farmers, officials and experts around Mkhuze suggest the chilling possibility that Lorna from Devon was likely killed so her body parts could be harvested for “muti” – a form of witchcraft believed by some to bring strength and wealth, as reported by The Sun.
Jacob Sabelo Ntshangase, a Zulu culture and language specialist who grew up in the region, told The Times that body parts from white people or those with albinism were believed by some to bring strength and wealth, reports Devon Live.
Lorna had been staying at the Ghost Mountain Inn with her partner Leon Probert, 81, when they decided to go for a short wildlife-spotting walk.
CCTV captured the couple from Teignmouth setting off around 2.30pm with an A4 map marking a three-mile circular walk to a nearby lake.
However, Leon soon returned to the hotel, finding the heat and distance too much, leaving his partner to continue her walk alone. He raised the alarm after she failed to return after more than three hours.
A huge search operation was initiated, with dogs, locals and helicopters joining officers in boats.
Initially, police suggested she may have been snatched by a crocodile or fallen victim to foul play, but emphasised there was no evidence to support either theory.
Reacting to suggestions that his partner might have been kidnapped for her body parts, Leon told The Times: “I never knew that sort of thing existed, but it is a possibility, I suppose, that she was taken away when you bear in mind there is no evidence of her existence.”
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