Desperate search for missing brother: Mpumalanga man goes missing on family trip back from Karoo | News24

Missing Isaac Khensani Dlakude, 39. (Supplied/Busisiwe Mbokodo)

• Isaac Khensani Dlakude, 39, went missing in Bloemfontein, Free State, on 8 September when he got out of a moving car in a hysterical state.
• Dlakude was last seen on the corner of Benade Avenue and Scholtz Street in Fichardtpark.
• He was on a trip back from the Western Cape with his sister and cousin when they took a break in Free State.

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A desperate Mpumalanga woman is asking for help in searching for her brother who went missing while they were on their way back from a trip to the Karoo.

Isaac Khensani Dlakude, 39, went missing in Bloemfontein, Free State, on 8 September when he got out of a moving car in a hysterical state.

His sister, Busisiwe Mbokodo, said she and Dlakude, along with their cousin, had visited Oudtshoorn in the Karoo, Western Cape, to attend the SA Army Infantry School’s Passing Out Parade.

“We arrived on 5 September from Mbombela, and on that day, in the evening, he started complaining about a headache, and I gave him tablets,” she said.

“But he started behaving differently. He was banging on his head and was talking to people that weren’t there. He spoke in a way that we could not understand. This was the first time we had ever seen him like this.”

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Mbokodo said her brother sustained a head injury when he was younger, which caused him chronic migraines, but he had never behaved out of character in that way before.

She said the group was able to spend two days in the Western Cape while Dlakude was experiencing episodes until they decided to head back to Mpumalanga on 7 September.

Along the way, the group decided to take a break in Bloemfontein, where they booked into a guest house in Fichardtpark.

“My brother was still having these episodes, and he kept trying to run, insisting that he wanted to go home while banging his head. Before 04:00, after a long evening of him having these episodes, we decided to get on the road and leave,” she said.

“Just as we were heading out, as the car approached the stop sign, he opened the door, got out, and ran in the opposite direction.”

Mbokodo said their attempts to run after him failed, as did their search for him. They then decided to report the matter to the authorities.

“If we can please get help finding him. We are very worried about him; we just want him home safe. He is vulnerable because he was not in a good state of mind when he took off,” said Mbokodo.

Dlakude was last seen on the corner of Benade Avenue and Scholtz Street in Fichardtpark, wearing a light green striped T-shirt, light brown striped pants, black jacket, and black socks with no shoes.

Police spokesperson Captain Loraine Earle confirmed that a missing person’s case was opened at the Park Road Police Station.

“Police are searching for him and have circulated him as missing to the local hospitals and police stations,” she said.

Earle urged anyone who sees a man matching his description to notify the police.