A couple from Kent were kidnapped in South Africa and had their bodies dismembered and sold to a witch doctor, it has been claimed.

Pensioners Tony and Gillian Dinnis, originally from Tunbridge Wells, disappeared from their farm in Middlerus in KwaZulu-Natal province in August last year.

They were attacked and abducted by three gunmen, with claims the bloodied parts were sold to a witch doctor, according to local news outlet Rapport.

Neighbour Kevin Foster reported their disappearance to police after not seeing them for several days.

The 59-year-old previously told The Sun: “Their five dogs were inside barking but when there was no sign of them the next day I knew something was wrong and got a neighbour and we forced our way inside.

“We found the doors and gates had been locked and released the dogs and the three cats but there was no sign of real disturbance inside but Gill’s walking stick was still there.

“She never goes anywhere without it as she has difficulty walking and that rang alarm bells as well as the fact the dogs and the three cats had been shut in rooms for so long.”

In September, two men were arrested and later released pending further investigations.

One of the men, Lungelo Mkhize, 22, confessed that the pair had been killed.

Mkhize allegedly worked on the Dinnis farm for two years before he found a job in Mooi River as a security guard.

In March, he was rearrested, facing two counts of kidnapping and one of extortion.

But at a hearing later that month, the State opposed bail on the grounds that the couple's bodies and phones were still missing. There was also no confession by a second suspect.

In an affidavit submitted in court by Detective Warrant Officer Johannes De Lange, the second suspect, who was employed by the couple at the time of their disappearance, allegedly admitted to the police that he was one of three men involved in the kidnapping.

De Lange told the court: “He also indicated that they went to the Dinnis residence and took a brush cutter, chainsaw and a TV.

“My parents were slaughtered. They were old, defenceless and only had each other...”

"He revealed that the other two men were armed with firearms.

"Thereafter, they left with the couple and went to another residence, where they murdered the couple."

According to the second suspect, the gang allegedly cut off the body parts and travelled five hours to Johannesburg to find a witch doctor.

It is understood the body parts were allegedly sold for £2,175, the court heard.

Mkhize was remanded in custody following the confession.

But South African news outlet The Citizen has reported the charges were dropped on Friday due to insufficient evidence and he was released. There is no information about the third person involved.

Tony, 73, and Gillian, 78, were married for 54 years and had four children.

They emigrated to South Africa more than 30 years ago to settle into a quiet life.

In an interview with Rapport, their daughter Kate Anderson said she fears the crime is being covered up.

The 52-year-old said: “My parents were slaughtered. They were old, defenceless and only had each other.

“It just feels to me that everything has been messed up...”

“Who does something like this to people? They have both just gone.

“It is as if strange beings took them there is no sign of them.

“The police used horses, motorcycles and dogs to comb the mountains and woods and a BBQ pit and their vegetable garden were dug up and the local dam was also searched.

“Apparently they could not get good fingerprints from the house.

“I kept asking the police to allocate more resources and asked for my mum’s phone to be tracked to try and find her.

“They said they had only one grabber device and it was being used in another case.”

Days after their disappearance, her brother Sam, 42, received a WhatsApp message from his mother’s phone demanding a £85,000 ransom to be paid into her bank account.

Kate was sent the same message which read: “To make things easy just pay R2m into this bank account number if you want to see your parents again”.

She also said she had been told the suspect claimed he had been beaten into a confession.

She added: “It just feels to me that everything has been messed up.

“I have sent many emails to the police and others beseeching them not to abandon the investigation and get justice”.