'Dead' Brazilian Turns Up At His Own Funeral

A Brazilian family were stunned when their relative arrived at his own funeral following a mix-up identifying the dead body.

The funeral of car washer Gilberto Araujo, 41, was being held in the town of Alagoinhas in northeast Brazil when Mr Araujo walked in.

His brother Jose Marcos had identified a body at the city morgue as being that of his brother and it was taken to their mother's home for a wake.

Mr Araujo rushed to his mother's house after bumping into a friend in the street a few hours before the ceremony, who told him his family were in mourning.

"He went to his mother's home to let everyone know he was very much alive," explained police inspector Roberto Lima.

A family friend revealed: "Some people fainted and others were so scared they ran away when he arrived. It was a big shock."

Mr Araujo's sister-in-law Ana Paula added: "The confusion started when news started circulating that a car washer had been shot dead.

"Police called my husband and told him that his brother had been killed and his body was at the morgue."

Mr Araujo' mother Marina Santana told reporters: "I am overjoyed. What mother wouldn't be after being told that her son is dead and then sees him alive?"

The man who was actually dead was named as Genivaldo Santos Gama.

Inspector Lima said the confusion was "understandable" as the two men closely resembled each other and both worked as car washers.