Ninth woman found dead in Ekurhuleni
A ninth woman’s body has been found in the Ekurhuleni municipality, east of Johannesburg, South African police said Thursday, raising concerns the killing is linked to a series of deaths of women in the area. All nine bodies were discovered in Ekurhuleni over the last two months.
Provincial police commissioner Fred Kekana said a passerby found the woman’s body near a construction site early Thursday and alerted police.
“The discovery of the latest body will be added to the investigations into the deaths of women in Ekurhuleni,” police said.
The unidentified woman appeared to be about 30 and had an apparent stab wound to her side, while her throat appeared to have been cut, Kekana said. Forensic investigators had not yet determined the official cause of death.
Kekana said police had not established whether the death was linked to the other cases and appealed for information from the public.
He also urged people not to circulate photographs of the bodies or unverified reports on social media, warning that they were spreading fear and could encourage copycat crimes.
Police previously said that some similarities in the killings of the first eight victims were “sufficiently concerning for the police to issue a public warning.”
A multidisciplinary team of experts has been assigned to investigate the cases and identify those responsible.
The bodies had been found across several Ekurhuleni communities, including:
- Kempton Park
- Pomona
- Clayville
- Olifantsfontein
- Rhodesfield
- KwaThema
- Dawn Park
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi said police were pursuing leads and making progress in two or three cases, though he did not provide details. He urged the public to give investigators time to gather sufficient evidence.
“They’ve declared war against the state,” Lesufi told reporters at the scene. “We’ll respond. We’re not going to surrender.”
Missing In Southern Africa, which supports missing people and their families, urged communities and families to report immediately when they suspected someone was missing.
“There is no waiting period to report a missing person,” the organization said. “The moment you suspect that someone is missing, report it immediately to the South African Police Service.”
