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A body that was found in a KwaZulu-Natal mortuary is believed to be that of Chilean national Slavko Andro Yaksic Besoain, who was last heard from last month while backpacking in the Dundee area.
As police and missing people organisations did their work, his worried family also roped in IRS Forensic Investigations to assist.
The 29-year-old was last seen in the Dundee area on his way to Bergville on September 24 and last made contact on Whatsapp a day later.
He was supposed to fly back to Chile from Johannesburg but missed his flight on October 10.
In a Facebook post on Saturday afternoon, the private detectives firm posted that he had been found dead.
Police, however, have said they are waiting for further tests to confirm the identity of the body.
"It is with sadness that we wish to report that the body of Slavko Andro Yaksic Besoain has been found in a mortuary in Kwazulu-Natal and positively identified by his father. We do not wish to comment further at this point and wish to convey our sincere condolences to the family," the IRS Forensic Investigations post stated.
The Witness reported on Friday that Besoain's father and a member of the Chilean Consulate had arrived in Durban on Thursday to help find "Kako", as he was known by family and friends.
It reported that he had spent a few days at the Melusi Christian Community before continuing on his journey to immerse himself in the local culture.
The Chilean media outlet Emol quoted his father Sergio Yaksic as saying that his son's body was found on October 13 by a passerby and Yaksic identified his body at the mortuary.
He reportedly said his son was found with his Chilean identity document, bank cards and driver's licence.
Besoain's brother-in-law Pablo Villalba posted a photo of the family on his Facebook profile on Saturday night, thanking everyone in Spanish for their assistance in the search.
He said that the search had ended and Besoain had left with the unconditional love of people who were always by his side.
Asked for confirmation of the news, Kwazulu-Natal Police spokesperson Captain Nqobile Gwala said a badly decomposed body was found in the Ladysmith area and an inquest docket was opened.
"The DNA [tests] will be conducted to identify the identity of the victim."
