A woman’s body has been found in Dawn Park, Boksburg, deepening fears among residents and putting renewed pressure on investigators trying to establish whether a series of women’s deaths across Ekurhuleni are connected.
The woman’s body was discovered on Thursday morning, bringing to nine the number of bodies found across Ekurhuleni since July.
Police said the woman was found partially naked, with preliminary indications suggesting that her body had been dumped at the scene. Police had not released her identity by Thursday morning.
The latest discovery comes as two of the women found in earlier cases have also been identified.
Thirty-eight-year-old Dineo Evelyn Motapane was identified by her family at the Springs Mortuary on Wednesday after her body was found on the side of the road in KwaThema, Springs, on Tuesday. Police said Motapane was last seen alive on Sunday and her family had not yet reported her missing when her body was discovered.
The first woman found dead in Kempton Park has also been identified as Nqobile Mahlangu, according to information shared by Diepkloof Community Radio. Her identification brings another name to a case that began in July and has since widened to include deaths in Kempton Park, Olifantsfontein, Clayville and KwaThema.
For investigators, however, the identities of the women are only one part of a much larger puzzle. Police have not established that the nine deaths were committed by the same person or group.
A multidisciplinary team involving detectives, intelligence officers, forensic specialists, tracking teams and K9 units continues to investigate the circumstances surrounding each death. Police have cautioned against treating speculation about a serial killer as an established fact while different possibilities are examined.
The latest discovery also raises questions about whether measures announced after the earlier deaths are reaching communities.
The SAPS has joined forces with the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department to increase visibility in affected areas, with Deputy National Police Commissioner Lieutenant-General Tebello Mosikili saying there would be increased patrols and “more boots on the ground”.
The City of Ekurhuleni has also activated a Joint Operation Centre led by EMPD to coordinate its response with SAPS.
City spokesperson Phakamile Mbengashe said the city would increase police visibility in Kempton Park and Rhodesfield, particularly during the morning and late afternoon and evening periods when people travel to and from work.
The promises have come as residents say the deaths have changed the way they move through their communities. Some women have stopped walking or running alone and are asking relatives, friends or colleagues to accompany them. For those living near the areas where bodies have been discovered, ordinary routines such as walking to work or exercising have become calculations about safety.
Women For Change founder Sabrina Walter previously warned against placing the responsibility for safety primarily on women. She said women were already vigilant and could not be expected to compensate for institutional failures by constantly changing how they lived.
The concern extends beyond the immediate investigation.
Dr Shaheda Omar, the director of the Teddy Bear Foundation, has warned that every woman killed leaves children and families who must live with the consequences. Children can lose not only a mother but also their routine, financial security, home and sense of safety.
For an eight-year-old child who realises that her mother has not returned home, Omar said, fear, anxiety, dread and a sense of abandonment could occur simultaneously, with some children even believing they have done something wrong.
She said there could be no fixed timeline for psychosocial intervention and that children and families needed sustained support.
As the number of bodies reach nine, the investigation is becoming not only a question of who is responsible but also of how many more families will have to wait for answers before women can move through their communities without fear.
Police are appealing for information that could help investigators establish what happened to the women and determine whether the cases are connected.