A GRANDFATHER in Kambi village near Mthatha is struggling to find closure and bury his grandson after police "lost" his bones.

Mlandeli Sanqele said his grandson, Zola Dayimani, drowned in the Mthatha River in 1996 when he was 12 years old and his body was never found.

In 2007 human bones were discovered in the area where he disappeared.

"The police took the bones for DNA testing but never returned them. Whenever I contact the investigating officer he says the matter is with the forensic department," he said.

Sanqele, 67, said he was considering committing suicide.

But the forensic department has denied being in possession of the bones.

Wilberforce Ngalo, the manager at the department, said: "We no longer have the bones, which were taken by the investigating officer in July 2007."

Police head of investigation Kennel Nkonzo Majola has since promised that the bones would be taken to Pretoria for tests. - Botwekazi Ndungane