Twelve women's bodies have been found in Ekurhuleni, the municipality next to Johannesburg, South Africa, prompting fears that a serial killer is targeting women in the area. Police have been finding the remains since mid-July, leading officers to believe a serial killer may be responsible.
Victims Found Naked and Battered
Many of the victims had been stripped naked or partially naked and battered before being dumped on the side of the road, hidden in fields, or thrown in a nearby river. Officers are now investigating anything which could link the victims.
The bodies have been dumped around the nearby O.R. Tambo International Airport – where more than 100 direct British Airways flights land from London every year. Figures show that more than 400,000 British holidaymakers visited South Africa last year, with many newlyweds choosing the country for a safari honeymoon.
Police Warning and Investigation Concerns
Police have not yet publicly confirmed they believe a serial killer is behind the murders, but said “the similarities are sufficiently concerning” to give a public warning. They have also warned women not to go out alone. Reports state that overwhelmed police have supposedly "botched" some parts of the investigation, and there are fears that a killer could strike again.
Paul O’Sullivan, an ex-murder cop who caught the infamous Wemmer Pan Killer, a serial murderer who killed 27 people in the southern suburbs of Johannesburg in the 90s, told The Sun he believes police have made a "key mistake in their hunt for whoever is behind the 12 women’s brutal deaths" as they have not released details of how the murders were carried out.
Expert Calls for Publication of Modus Operandi
O’Sullivan said: “Obviously, the police have identified that there is a serial killer. One of the quickest ways to catch a serial killer is to publish their modus operandi.”
He continued: “It lets the killer know that you’re onto him and it also warns the public as to the sort of things that they should look out for. It’s a shocking state of affairs when you have the police warning women not to go out alone.”
He also believes it is one killer behind many of the murders: "You can’t say they’re copycat killers, because nobody knows what the modus operandi of the alleged serial killer is."
Victims Named and Calls for Justice
Among the victims are Elizabeth Moselakgomo, who went running and didn't come home, as well as Dineo Motapane, 38, Itumeleng Kekana, 32, Gracious Nkomo, 28, and Jabulile Ntimba.
Tegan Snyman, from Amnesty International South Africa, told The Sun: “There’s very high distrust in the police. A lot of violence and sexual violence cases fail because of a lack of collection of evidence, procedural errors, not taking the right statements.”
She added: “Because it’s now a big case, hopefully attention will be given and attention to detail and it’ll be properly done. But what about all the people that get killed all the time and it doesn’t make it to the news?”
Juanita du Preez, CEO of the Action Society, warned that huge backlogs in forensics processing mean that even after a suspect is identified, it can take years for evidence to confirm their guilt. She told The Sun: “We spend about three and a half years on average for a case until there is a conclusion. And then the criminals go to prison and they get out on parole easily. Then the recidivism rate is very, very high, above 90 percent so it becomes an evil, evil, evil loop.”
