Crime & Justice
South African police rescue 200 people from illegal rehab centre
October 16, 2026 at 04:57 PM
Coverage
2 reports · 1 in Arabic, 1 in English
South African police rescued about 200 people, some in chains, from an unlicensed rehabilitation centre in Mpumalanga province.
- Police rescued about 200 people found held at a suspected illegal rehabilitation centre run from a church in Mpumalanga province.
- A pastor and his wife were arrested and charged with kidnapping, with police saying more charges could follow.
- Authorities said they found "gross inhumane conditions," with some people chained to each other and others covered in sores.
- Police spokesperson Donald Mdhluli said many of those rescued came from Johannesburg and Rustenburg, with details still under investigation.

