14/09/2026
FOUR WOMEN, ONE AREA, TWO MONTHS: INSIDE THE KEMPTON PARK DEATHS AS SAPS SEARCHES FOR A POSSIBLE LINK
MDN INVESTIGATION | KEMPTON PARK, EKURHULENI
The deaths of four women whose bodies were discovered in and around Kempton Park over approximately two months have triggered a specialised police investigation, with SAPS now examining whether the cases are connected.
But despite growing public fears of a serial killer, police have made one point clear: there is currently no confirmed evidence that a single perpetrator is responsible for all four deaths.
Acting Gauteng Provincial Commissioner Major General Fred Kekana said investigators had identified similarities between some of the cases, but warned that it would be premature to conclude that the deaths were linked.
“Our responsibility is to establish the facts through evidence,” Kekana said.
SAPS has consequently brought together detectives, forensic specialists, tracking teams, K9 Search and Rescue personnel and the Investigative Psychology Unit to examine the evidence, timelines, locations, victim profiles and circumstances surrounding each death.
THE FOUR CASES — WHAT IS ACTUALLY KNOWN
The first case dates back to 15 July 2026.
Police found the body of a 37-year-old woman near the R21. According to information released by police, she was found naked and had allegedly been restrained with cable ties.
Two days later, on 17 July, police arrested a suspect in connection with that particular case. That suspect remains in custody while the investigation continues.
Crucially, SAPS has not said that the suspect arrested in the July case is responsible for any of the other three deaths.
That distinction is important.
The second body was discovered on 24 August 2026, also near the R21.
The deceased was a 32-year-old woman who was found partially clothed.
There is no publicly available evidence at this stage establishing that the suspect arrested in July is connected to this second case. Police are treating the cases as individual investigations while simultaneously examining possible links.
Then came the third discovery.
On 10 September, police found the body of an unidentified woman in an advanced state of decomposition.
She was reportedly found naked, and her identity had not been established when police briefed the media.
Because of the condition of the body, the identification process is expected to depend on forensic and mortuary procedures rather than simple visual identification.
Less than 48 hours later, the investigation took another disturbing turn.
On 12 September, a fourth body was discovered in Rhodesfield, behind a hotel in the area.
The woman was 38 years old, was wearing sports clothing and was found partially clothed.
Police had not formally confirmed her identity when Major-General Kekana addressed the matter.
That body is particularly significant because it was discovered shortly after 38-year-old Elizabeth Mokolo Moselakgomo, also known as “Tsontso”, disappeared after going for a run in Rhodesfield.
THE ELIZABETH MOSELAKGOMO QUESTION
Elizabeth Moselakgomo's disappearance has become one of the most sensitive elements of the investigation.
SAPS said the 38-year-old went missing after leaving her home in Kempton Park for an afternoon run on 10 September.
According to reporting from SABC and local media, she was last seen in the Rhodesfield area, with family members reporting her disappearance after she failed to return.
Her eight-year-old daughter reportedly raised the alarm and contacted relatives.
Police subsequently intensified the search, including enquiries at hospitals and mortuaries.
A body discovered on 12 September was found in the same broad area.
That immediately generated speculation that it was Moselakgomo.
But the family could not initially identify the body.
Reports indicate that the body had suffered serious facial injuries, making visual identification difficult. It was transported to a state mortuary, with the family expected to undertake formal identification on Monday, 14 September.
The family has specifically appealed to the public to stop circulating unverified claims about Elizabeth's whereabouts or the identity of the deceased woman.
For MDN, this is a critical distinction:
Elizabeth Moselakgomo has been reported missing. The woman found on 12 September had not, as of the latest confirmed reporting available to us, been formally identified as Elizabeth.
Until that identification is completed, MDN should not publish that she is the fourth victim.
WHY POLICE ARE CONCERNED
There are several factors that explain why SAPS has escalated the investigation.
First is the geographical concentration.
The bodies were discovered in the Kempton Park/Rhodesfield area, with several of the discoveries occurring near the R21.
Second is the circumstantial similarity.
SAPS said preliminary information indicated that the women were found partially or half naked and with visible bruising, and that the discovery sites were within the same vicinity.
Third is the short period involved.
The four discoveries span approximately two months:
15 July → 24 August → 10 September → 12 September.
That does not prove a common perpetrator.
But it is sufficient to justify a serious comparative investigation.
And SAPS has done exactly that.
The Investigative Psychology Unit has been brought in specifically to examine behavioural patterns and potential links between the cases.
THE SERIAL-KILLER CLAIM: WHAT THE EVIDENCE SAYS
This is where social media has moved considerably faster than the evidence.
Posts circulating online have described a “serial killer” as being on the loose.
Some media reports have also used the phrase “serial killer fears”.
But SAPS itself has not confirmed a serial killer.
Major-General Kekana has explicitly said police are considering multiple possibilities.
That includes:
• one perpetrator;
• multiple perpetrators;
• separate perpetrators;
• cases that are connected in some way but not necessarily committed by the same person; and
• the possibility that some of the women were killed elsewhere and their bodies subsequently dumped in Kempton Park.
SABC reported that police are specifically investigating whether the women were killed in Kempton Park or whether their bodies were transported there and dumped.
This distinction matters because a common dumping location does not automatically establish a common killer.
A serial-killer determination requires evidence connecting the crimes — potentially through forensic evidence, DNA, ballistics where applicable, digital evidence, CCTV, telecommunications data, witness evidence, modus operandi and other investigative findings.
At present, those connections have not been publicly established.
THE SUSPECT ALREADY IN CUSTODY
One of the most important facts in the investigation is also one of the easiest to misrepresent.
Police have confirmed that a suspect was arrested on 17 July, two days after the first woman's body was found.
That suspect remains in custody in connection with the July case.
However, SAPS has not announced that the suspect is being investigated for all four deaths.
Major-General Kekana specifically said investigators are not limiting themselves to one suspect or one theory.
That means the arrest should not be presented as a breakthrough proving that the four cases have been solved.
It is a development in one of the four investigations.
The question now is whether forensic or investigative evidence from the other three cases connects that suspect to them. There is currently no publicly confirmed answer to that question.
ANOTHER INVESTIGATIVE THREAD: ONLINE DATING
There is another concern emerging from the police investigation.
Kempton Park police have identified approximately 10 cases involving people who allegedly met individuals through online dating platforms or social media and were subsequently lured to locations where they were robbed and, in some instances, r***d.
Police have consequently warned people meeting strangers through online platforms to use public locations, inform trusted people of their movements and avoid being lured to isolated places.
THE COMMUNITY SAFETY QUESTION
Regardless of whether the cases ultimately prove to be connected, the police response indicates that authorities consider the situation sufficiently serious to warrant an immediate public warning.
Women and girls have been urged to avoid isolated areas, exercise or walk in groups where possible, inform someone of their movements and remain in populated, well-lit areas.
SAPS has stressed that these precautions are temporary safety measures while investigators establish the facts, rather than restrictions on women's freedom to use public spaces.
The broader concern is therefore bigger than the phrase “serial killer”.
Four women are dead.
One woman is missing and, as of the latest confirmed reporting, her family is still awaiting formal identification.
One suspect is already in custody in relation to one case.
And police have now deployed specialised investigative resources to determine whether these apparently separate events form a pattern.
For now, the evidence establishes a disturbing pattern — but it does not yet establish a serial killer.
Anyone with information about suspicious activity, the victims' movements or the cases can contact Warrant Officer Elvis Manyike on 082 465 7249.
