The University of Free State (UFS) has confirmed that Kwandiswa Masibonge Xaba, who went missing on 4 June 2022, was found on Sunday 17 July 2022 in Tembisa, Gauteng. According to the UFS Department of Communication and Marketing, Xaba has been found alive and unharmed.
It is said that Xaba is a first-year Bachelor of Science student majoring in Mathematics and Chemistry on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus from Ladysmith in KwaZulu-Natal.
In a statement, the university said:
She is in good health and has been reunited with her family in Ladysmith.
The university shared that the student was last seen leaving the campus, taking a taxi to an undisclosed location and was observed on other video footage in Phuthaditjhaba during the time she was missing.
During the period of the student being missing, it was reported that the incident led to fellow students, family and people outside of the student community being worried.
Even though there are no recent statistics about reported cases of missing people in South Africa, police stats from 2000 to 2020 revealed that 94,252 people were reported missing in South Africa.
The university management extends its gratitude to the South African Police Service (SAPS), the institution’s Protection Services, and the university community for the role they played in ensuring that Xaba was found.
