The search for 25-year-old Asimbongekuhle Sibanda has ended in tragedy after her family learned that she had been admitted to Tambo Memorial Hospital in Gauteng on 24 April 2026, the same day she was reported to have disappeared, and later died on 15 June.

The discovery came after Missing Person South Africa published an appeal for information about Sibanda’s whereabouts. Following the publication, the hospital contacted Missing Person South Africa seeking assistance in reaching her family. The organisation connected the two parties, leading the family to learn what had happened during the months they believed she was still missing.

What Happened to Missing Asimbongekuhle Sibanda in Gauteng

Sibanda had been reported missing after she was last known to be in Benoni on 24 April.

Information initially submitted to Missing Person South Africa by her friend, Beverly Mboma, indicated that Sibanda had been in Benoni and had visited her boyfriend. She reportedly later left, saying that she intended to go to her sister’s place in Sandton.

Her whereabouts after that were unknown to those looking for her.

Mboma subsequently submitted Sibanda’s case through the Missing Person South Africa missing-person portal. The disappearance had also been reported to Benoni Police Station under case number 01/06/2026.

At the time the appeal was submitted and subsequently published, those searching for Sibanda did not know that she had been admitted to hospital.

Following Missing Person South Africa’s publication of the case, Tambo Memorial Hospital contacted the organisation and indicated that it wanted to get in touch with Sibanda’s family.

Missing Person South Africa then facilitated contact between the hospital and the family.

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Asimbongekuhle Sibanda Was Admitted to Hospital on 24 April

After making contact with the hospital, Sibanda’s family received information that changed what they had understood about her disappearance.

According to information the family subsequently provided to Missing Person South Africa, Sibanda arrived at the hospital on 24 April.

The family said she had provided her mother’s Zimbabwean telephone number as her contact number. They were told that attempts to reach the family through that number were unsuccessful.

According to the account relayed by the family, Sibanda was ill and did not recover.

Asimbongekuhle died on 15 June 2026.

This meant that while her loved ones believed they were dealing with an unresolved missing-person case, Sibanda had been receiving medical care and had subsequently died without the family being aware of what had happened.

The precise nature of her illness has not yet been provided to Missing Person South Africa.

Read also | 25-Year-Old Asimbongekuhle Sibanda Missing in Benoni, Gauteng

Family Learns Asimbongekuhle Sibanda Was Buried on 18 September

According to the information given to the family, further attempts were made to locate Sibanda’s relatives after her death, but they were unsuccessful.

The family was told that she was eventually buried on 18 September 2026.

After learning of her death, relatives went to the hospital. They were subsequently directed to the funeral parlour that had been tasked with handling her burial.

The family is now dealing with the devastating discovery that the woman they had believed was missing had died months earlier.

For months, they did not know that Sibanda had been admitted to hospital on the same date from which her whereabouts had become unknown to them.

The family told Missing Person South Africa that they are devastated by what they have learned.

Further information surrounding the burial and the family’s next steps is expected after relatives have spoken with the funeral parlour.

Missing Person South Africa will not speculate about those circumstances while the family is still establishing exactly what happened.

Timeline From Asimbongekuhle Sibanda’s Disappearance to Her Burial

24 April 2026: Asimbongekuhle Sibanda was last known by those close to her to have been in Benoni. According to the original missing-person information, she had been at her boyfriend’s home and reportedly said she was going to her sister’s place in Sandton.

On that same day, however, Sibanda was admitted to Tambo Memorial Hospital. Her family says they did not know that she had been taken to hospital.

According to information later given to the family, Asimbongekuhle provided her mother’s Zimbabwean telephone number as her contact. The hospital was reportedly unable to reach her relatives using the number provided.

15 June 2026: After spending several weeks in hospital, Sibanda died. Her family says they remained unaware that she had been hospitalised or that she had died.

According to the account given to the family, further efforts were made to locate her relatives after her death, but no contact was established.

Meanwhile, those close to Asimbongekuhle continued to regard her whereabouts as unknown. Her friend, Beverly Mboma, eventually submitted her case to Missing Person South Africa, and the disappearance had also been reported at Benoni Police Station.

18 September 2026: Asimbongekuhle was buried after efforts to locate her relatives had reportedly been unsuccessful. Her family says they still did not know at this stage that she had died.

The situation changed after Missing Person South Africa published an appeal seeking information about Sibanda’s whereabouts.

Following the publication, Tambo Memorial Hospital contacted Missing Person South Africa because it wanted to reach Sibanda’s family. Missing Person South Africa then connected the hospital with her relatives.

It was through this contact that the family says they finally learned that Sibanda had entered hospital on 24 April, died on 15 June and had already been buried on 18 September.

Missing Person South Africa Appeal Helped Connect Hospital and Family

The development came after Missing Person South Africa published Sibanda’s case as part of the effort to establish her whereabouts.

The appeal contained information submitted by Beverly Mboma, Sibanda’s friend, who had filed the missing-person report through the organisation’s online portal.

Instead of receiving a sighting from a member of the public, Missing Person South Africa was contacted by the hospital seeking the family.

That contact allowed Missing Person South Africa to connect the hospital with Sibanda’s relatives.

The case highlights how a missing-person appeal can sometimes uncover information very different from what relatives expect. In Sibanda’s case, those searching for her had been looking for information about where she might be, unaware that she had entered the hospital on the day from which her movements became unknown.

There are still details that have not yet been established, including further information surrounding her burial and what arrangements may now be made by her relatives.

Missing Person South Africa extends its condolences to Asimbongekuhle Sibanda’s family, friends and everyone who had been hoping for her safe return.

The organisation will provide further verified information once it becomes available and the family has received additional details from the funeral parlour.

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