South Africa minister pledges to help repatriate bodies of Zimbabwean mother and son killed by his official car

South Africa’s Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has pledged to help repatriate the bodies of a Zimbabwean mother and her son, killed by his official vehicle, for burial in Zimbabwe.

Beauty Shoperai and her one-year-old son died on the N1 near Bela-Bela on Saturday evening.

Shoperai was trying to cross the road to reach her husband, who had been struck by a police car and killed minutes earlier.

Motsoaledi visited the family at their home in Bela-Bela on Friday, 15 May 2026.

He appeared sombre as he shared in the family’s grief and said he remained traumatised by the accident.

“It was very, very difficult because everything happens in a you know… I was sitting in the back of a car when I saw something in front of the car, but before I could even think, there was a smash. To discover that it actually hit human beings, it was devastating. Especially when I stood there, because it was already dark, the cars were coming fast and hitting people who were also on the road, and you just couldn’t stop them because they were moving very fast, so you just feel helpless.”

The minister arrived dressed in black, with a small group who brought groceries for the family.

He has promised to help the family repatriate their loved ones so they can be buried back home in Zimbabwe. *_-Pindula_*