The body of a 35-year-old woman found behind a club in KwaThema, Springs, on September 15, 2026, has become the eighth case drawn into a widening police investigation into the deaths of women in and around Kempton Park, east of Johannesburg, over roughly two months.
The woman was found near the KwaThema Centre, behind a row of shops, and had not been identified when police announced the discovery. Her body was decomposed, leaving the time of death unclear, and investigators believe it was dumped there. The discovery came as President Cyril Ramaphosa ordered the cases treated as a priority and police offered a R400,000 reward — about $24,500, or £18,000 — for information leading to a breakthrough.
Only two of the eight women have been publicly identified. Itumeleng Kekana, 32, vanished in Kempton Park, where a missing-person report was filed on July 17; her body turned up on August 3 in Pomona, near Great North Road and not far from the Max informal settlement. Elizabeth “Tsontso” Moselakgomo, 38, a mother and avid runner, left home for her usual run on September 9 and never came back. Her young daughter raised the alarm. Moselakgomo’s body was found on September 12 behind a hotel in Rhodesfield, Kempton Park, near the R21, and her family identified her at the Germiston mortuary on September 14. Her case gained wide attention once other runners took to social media in an effort to locate her — an effort that ultimately led to more bodies being found.
What Police Say About a Link
Police have not concluded that one person is behind the deaths. National police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe has called the similarities between some of the cases concerning, pointing to the condition in which the women were found and the way their bodies were left, while cautioning that it is too early to draw conclusions about a single perpetrator.
Investigators are not treating the deaths as the work of a serial killer at this stage. “For now, nothing tells us that we’ve got a serial killer,” Mathe told reporters. They are also weighing whether a group of people is responsible — or whether someone is imitating an earlier crime. “It could be that it’s a copycat crime that is happening right here but so far, no linkages as yet,” Mathe said.
Several of the women were found undressed and decomposed, and police say a number of them were bruised or assaulted before they died. That is the thread that has pulled the cases together for detectives, who are working them collectively while trying to establish whether any are connected.
One man was arrested on July 17 in connection with the first death — a 37-year-old woman found on July 15 in an open field near the R21 in Kempton Park — and he remains in custody. He is reported to have been the woman’s partner. Police have not established any connection between him and the seven other deaths.
Eight Cases Across Ekurhuleni
The cases span Kempton Park, Pomona, Clayville, Olifantsfontein, Rhodesfield and KwaThema in the Ekurhuleni district. Kempton Park sits across the highway from the country’s main international gateway. Olifantsfontein lies about 24 kilometers (15 miles) north of Kempton Park; KwaThema, in Springs, is about 34 kilometers (21 miles) away.
After the July 15 case, a 32-year-old woman’s body was found near the R21 in Kempton Park on August 24; her identity has not been released. On September 7, a woman believed to be in her late twenties was found in a river in Clayville, near Tembisa Mall — a case initially left out of the central investigation and later folded in, with Acting Gauteng Police Commissioner Fred Kekana confirming it would form part of the wider inquiry. September 10 brought the discovery of another woman, still unnamed, close to where the R21 meets Voortrekker Road in Kempton Park. On September 14, a woman’s body was found beside a road in Olifantsfontein.
Officers have urged any family whose relative is missing to make contact, so that the remaining women can be named.
A High-Level Government Response
“I have directed that these cases be prioritised and that no stone be left unturned in bringing those responsible to justice,” Ramaphosa said in a statement. He said agencies were moving with urgency to determine what happened, protect residents and see whoever was responsible answer in court. “As a nation, we must stand up for the rights, safety and dignity of women and girls,” he said.
A multidisciplinary team of detectives, forensic experts, intelligence officers and specialized units has been assembled. Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia, who called the discoveries deeply distressing, said the South African Police Service (SAPS) was equal to the task. “The team is in place, and I can give you the assurance, based on past experience, that when it comes to such situations, the South African Police Service has the experience, the high-level expertise, to investigate cases of this kind,” he said. What was needed, he added, was committed law enforcement, visible policing and expert investigation backed by communities. He cautioned the public against rumors and unverified claims circulating on social media and said it was premature to speculate about a pattern.
Sindisiwe Chikunga, the minister for women, youth and persons with disabilities, joined the meeting, as did Social Development Minister Dina Pule, Deputy Police Minister Dr. Polly Boshielo, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi and Acting National Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Puleng Dimpane. “The police will lock down this area in the coming weeks,” Cachalia said. “The community will see the presence of the South African Police Service.” SAPS also plans to expand police visibility through Operation Shanela.
The deaths have landed in a country where women are killed at five times the global average rate, according to UN Women. Police recorded upwards of 27,600 murders nationally in the twelve months ending March 31, 2024, the most recent full-year figures available; 5,578 of the victims were women. Between April and July 2026, the country recorded 5,427 murders — an average of 45 a day. Ramaphosa labeled gender-based violence a national crisis in November 2025, a step that followed a demonstration by hundreds of women in Johannesburg the day before the G20 summit opened there. Specialist officers investigating the Ekurhuleni cases have told women in and around Kempton Park not to walk or run alone in isolated areas — advice that drew a sharp response from the advocacy group Women For Change. “We are tired of being told to be vigilant when women are already doing everything possible to stay alive,” the group said.