Eighth Woman's Body Found Near Johannesburg as South Africa Investigates Possible Serial Killer

Police in Gauteng province, South Africa, have recovered the bodies of at least eight women since mid-July, according to a report published by CTV News on September 15 citing AFP. The count has shifted as investigators confirm links between cases: the Guardian and africabriefing reported seven victims, the South African Council of Churches (SACC) counted six as of the morning of September 15, and CBS News reported a seventh body found Tuesday in Kwa-Thema. These discrepancies reflect an investigation still developing as new evidence emerges.

Most of the bodies were found in and around Kempton Park and Olifantsfontein, both near OR Tambo International Airport east of Johannesburg, part of the Ekurhuleni metro area. Additional bodies turned up in Kwa-Thema and Springs, and africabriefing reported that police retroactively linked a body found September 7 in Clayville, Tembisa, to the same specialized investigation, bringing the total under scrutiny to seven as of that report.

The case that drew national attention involved Elizabeth "Tsontso" Moselakgomo, a 38-year-old mother who went missing on September 9 after going for a run near Kempton Park. Her eight-year-old daughter alerted relatives when she didn't return, according to the Guardian. Fellow runners launched a social media campaign that went viral, and her half-naked body was found on Saturday, September 12, then identified by relatives on Monday, September 14.

Police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe told reporters this week that investigators see enough similarity between cases to issue a public warning, but stopped short of confirming a single perpetrator. "While investigations are still underway and SAPS has not, at this stage, confirmed that the deaths are linked to a serial killer, the similarities are sufficiently concerning for the police to issue a public warning and intensify investigations," Mathe said, according to CBS News. On Monday she was more direct: "For now, nothing tells us that we've got a serial killer."

Acting police minister Firoz Cachalia called the discoveries "deeply disturbing" and said a multidisciplinary team has been assembled to determine whether the cases are connected, identify suspects and prosecute them. A suspect, described as the boyfriend of the first victim killed in July, remains in custody in that case, but no arrests have been made in the others, according to the SACC.

President Ramaphosa said Tuesday he had directed police to prioritize the investigations, saying "no stone be left unturned in bringing those responsible to justice" and that law enforcement is working with citizens who might have information, per his statement carried by CBS News.

The vigilance backlash

Police also urged women in the area not to jog or walk alone and to avoid secluded spaces. That advice, while standard public-safety guidance in an active investigation with an unidentified threat, met resistance from women already taking precautions. The advocacy group Women For Change told the Guardian: "We are tired of being told to be vigilant when women are already doing everything possible to stay alive." The group argued it shouldn't take a viral missing-persons case and a community search before an area gets searched with real intensity.

The SACC went further, calling the deaths "a scandal for a nation that just celebrated the 70th anniversary of the 1956 Women's March" and describing the pattern as "a national moral collapse." SACC General Secretary Rev. Mzwandile Molo said women "should not have to restrict their movements and activities for fear of predators in our midst."

The numbers behind the outrage

South Africa recorded 5,427 murders between April and July of this year, an average of 45 a day, according to the latest crime statistics cited by CBS News. Of more than 27,600 people murdered in the year ending March 2024, 5,578 were women, per Guardian reporting on police data. Parliament reported in February 2026 that the country's femicide rate stands at nine per 100,000 women, roughly five times the global average, according to africabriefing. A Human Sciences Research Council study found 7.3 million adult women have experienced physical violence in their lifetime.

Ramaphosa declared gender-based violence and femicide a national disaster in November 2025 after protests on the eve of the G20 summit in Johannesburg and a petition with more than one million signatures. That declaration was supposed to create a framework to accelerate government resources. Ten months later, the bodies are still turning up faster than police can identify them.

Whether one perpetrator or several are responsible remains unanswered. Cachalia's multidisciplinary task force has not announced a timeline for determining whether the cases are formally linked, and no additional arrests have been made beyond the one suspect held in the July case.