Police Offer R400,000 Reward As Eight Women Are Found Dead In Ekurhuleni

Police have put up a R400,000 reward for information that could help identify and arrest those responsible for the deaths of eight women whose bodies have been discovered at different locations across Ekurhuleni, Gauteng.

Acting national police commissioner Puleng Dimpane announced the reward during a media briefing at the South African Police Service (SAPS) Gauteng headquarters in Parktown on Tuesday night. Investigators are now examining the cases together as they work to establish whether there is a connection between the deaths.

The discoveries have been reported in areas including Kempton Park, Clayville, Olifantsfontein, Rhodesfield and KwaThema. Police are appealing to the public, particularly families with missing relatives, to provide information that could help identify the victims and advance the investigation.

Ekurhuleni Women Deaths: SAPS Sets Up Specialised Investigation Team

The Ekurhuleni women deaths are being investigated by a specialised team supported by crime intelligence and other police units. Dimpane said national intelligence structures had also been instructed to assist investigators working on the cases.

“We do have crime intelligence on the ground, provincial crime intelligence, as well as economic crime intelligence. Subsequently, I also instructed the head of intelligence at national level to guide this particular team,” she said.

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Dimpane said police had been working on the cases since the first incident was reported in July. She confirmed that one person had already been arrested in connection with one of the cases, while another person was being pursued.

“You will note that there is a case that was reported in July. We successfully investigated that case and there is a person behind bars in terms of that. So we have one arrest currently. We also have one person that we are pursuing,” she said.

The acting national commissioner stressed that the person being pursued was linked to only one of the cases. She cautioned against assuming that the individual was being sought in connection with all the deaths.

“It is for one case. We are not pursuing him or her in terms of their identification, and it is related to one case,” Dimpane said.

Ekurhuleni Women Deaths: Eight Victims Found Across Gauteng

The Ekurhuleni women deaths investigation began with the discovery of a 37-year-old woman in Kempton Park on 15 July. Her body was found naked and restrained with cable ties in an open field close to the R21 highway, and police arrested a suspect, reportedly her partner, two days later in connection with the murder.

A second victim was discovered near the R21 in Kempton Park on 24 August. The 32-year-old woman's body was found partially clothed.

On 7 September, police discovered a woman believed to be in her late 20s in a river in Clayville, Olifantsfontein, close to Thembisa Mall. She was found wearing only underwear, while acting Gauteng police commissioner Fred Kekana said the case would be incorporated into the wider investigation.

Kekana spoke to the media at the KwaThema crime scene on Tuesday afternoon and said police had reviewed information from several stations after identifying an increase in reports involving bodies being dumped. He also cautioned against speculation about why the Clayville victim was found without most of her clothing.

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Dimpane later confirmed that another woman's body had been discovered in Olifantsfontein on 7 September. Police acknowledged that this case had initially not been included in their overall tally.

“So we might have missed this particular case when we did our numbers. It was picked up today,” she said.

On 10 September, an unidentified woman was found in Kempton Park at about 10.20am. Police said her body was naked and in an advanced state of decomposition, with forensic procedures being used to establish her identity.

The remains of 38-year-old Elizabeth “Tsontso” Moselakgomo were discovered in Rhodesfield, Kempton Park, on 12 September. Moselakgomo had been reported missing by her eight-year-old daughter on 9 September after she failed to return from her usual run, and her family positively identified her two days after the discovery.

Her remains were reportedly partially naked and bruised. A separate unidentified woman was found in Olifantsfontein on the morning of 14 September after a passerby alerted authorities, with police saying she was partially naked and bruised and appeared to have been dumped there.

The latest discovery was made in KwaThema, Springs, on 15 September. Police found the body of an unidentified woman believed to be in her 30s behind a shop, with the remains naked and in a state of decomposition.

Ekurhuleni Women Deaths: Police Appeal For Information On Victims

The Ekurhuleni women deaths have prompted SAPS to appeal directly to families who may have relatives missing in the affected areas. Dimpane said identifying the unknown victims could help investigators establish leads in the individual cases.

“There are unknown victims and we are calling upon families in particular around this area to come forward if they know of any family member who cannot account for their whereabouts,” she said.

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“The sooner we identify these victims, the quicker it will assist us to follow specific leads as well as to crack these particular cases.”

Dimpane said the R400,000 reward was intended to encourage people with relevant information to assist investigators. She also highlighted the role of communities, the media and other stakeholders in supporting police efforts.

“Indeed, over and above the intelligence teams that we have put together, we also acknowledge that the community as well as the media plays a significant role, as well as all other stakeholders, in assisting us to maintain law and order,” Dimpane said.

“We are offering a reward. Any information that we can get ... there is R400,000 that we are putting on the table so that we are able to strengthen our investigations.”

Police are continuing to collect forensic evidence and intelligence from the different scenes. SAPS is also investigating whether the eight cases are connected while pursuing leads in the individual investigations.