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No, Zimbabwe’s Mugabe not buried in ‘computerised’ casket

Robert Mugabe, the former president of Zimbabwe, died on 6 September 2019. A state send-off for him was held on 14 September in Harare, the country’s capital.

Two days before, on 12 September, a Facebook user posted two photos with the claim they were of Mugabe’s coffin.

The photos show a small white casket with a computer screen attached to one side, and a keyboard jutting out the other side.

The post reads: “Mugabe's casket cost 17m. It has been computerised in such a way that after his internment, his family can watch his remains through their phones. Supplier of casket said the facilities in it will Prevent corpse from decomposing for 10 years.”



Photos online for 12 years 


A Google reverse image search reveals that photos of the “computerised” casket have been online since at least 2007.

One of the photos can be seen on a 2007 blog post. 

The photos also appear in a 2012 YouTube video, titled Top 10 Amazing PC Case Mods.

Mugabe lay in brown casket


“Lies Mugabe’s casket was brown. Stop this lies,” a Facebook user commented on the post

Mugabe’s body lay in a brown casket, wrapped with the flag of Zimbabwe. The burial is expected in October 2019 after a new mausoleum has been built. 

Photos from the state send off show there was no computer screen or keyboard attached to the coffin. – Allwell Okpi

Further reading:

https://africacheck.org/fbcheck/no-mugabes-love-of-adidas-didnt-get-him-this-trendy-body-bag/

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