Home Affairs joins Ekurhuleni murder probe as police test links between nine women's deaths

A ninth woman was found dead in Dawn Park, Boksburg, on Thursday morning, and the Department of Home Affairs has now joined the police investigation into the deaths of nine women across Ekurhuleni since July.

A passer-by spotted the body near Lama Street. Police have not named her. Three of the nine have been publicly identified: Elizabeth “Tsontso” Moselakgomo, Itumeleng Kekana and Dineo Evelyn Motapane. Motapane’s family identified the 38-year-old at the Springs Mortuary on Wednesday, after her body was found beside a road in KwaThema.

As The South African reported on 17 September, Home Affairs officials, including immigration officials at national and provincial level, have joined the operation. Investigators will work through fingerprint and biometric records to establish who the unidentified women were, to trace where they were before they died and to find out whether any of them knew each other.

What the police have, and what they do not

Acting Gauteng Police Commissioner Major General Fred Kekana said detectives have found possible links between some of the cases. He also said the connections cannot be confirmed until forensic and investigative evidence is in hand. The South African Police Service has not said which cases it believes may be connected.

Police have been careful on this point from the start. They cautioned against joining the deaths together before there was evidence to do it, and they have not established that one person killed all nine women. Detectives are comparing evidence from the different crime scenes while forensic specialists work out which cases, if any, share a common link.

There are two men in the picture, and police have publicly connected neither of them to the wider group of deaths. A man arrested in connection with the first murder in July remains in custody. Investigators are also pursuing a person of interest.

The multidisciplinary team on the cases brings together SAPS detectives, forensic specialists and crime intelligence officials, and now Home Affairs.

Why Home Affairs is in the room

Biometric records are the state’s own tool for putting a name to a body. Without an identity, an investigation loses the thread that matters most in a murder case: who the person was, where she lived, who last saw her alive and who she was with in the days before she died.

That is the practical reason the department was brought in. It is also the reason the identity of the remaining six women is the single most important thing standing between this investigation and a clear picture of what happened to them.

The state’s response, and what it is asking for

Police have urged families with missing relatives to come forward, and have appealed to anyone with information to contact Crime Stop on 08600 10111 or use the MySAPS app. A family that reports a missing person gives investigators a name to match against the records, which is how an unidentified body becomes a known one.

On Thursday, government leaders joined grieving families and communities at the Kempton Park Civic Centre. Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia delivered a message from President Cyril Ramaphosa at a memorial dialogue against gender-based violence and femicide. Ramaphosa said the country stood with the families and communities in mourning, and noted that not all the victims have been identified.

Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities Sindisiwe Chikunga attended the memorial service for Moselakgomo and called for stronger action against gender-based violence and femicide. The gathering took place hours after police confirmed the ninth body in Dawn Park.

What happens next

The investigation continues on two tracks that have to meet. Forensic specialists are working to establish which crime scenes share evidence, and Home Affairs is working to put names to the women who are still unidentified. Until both are done, police say they cannot confirm the links they suspect.

The families of the six unnamed women are the people who will feel this first. Anyone with a missing relative in Ekurhuleni can approach SAPS or Home Affairs directly, and the Crime Stop line is open on 08600 10111.

Source: The South African, Ekurhuleni killings: Home Affairs joins probe as police find possible links