Lesufi vows pushback as ninth woman's body is found in Dawn Park

The body of a 30-year-old woman was found beside a road in Dawn Park, Ekurhuleni, on Thursday morning, half-naked and wrapped in a sheet. She is the ninth woman whose body has been found in the district in two months.

Investigators are working to establish her identity and the circumstances of her death. The discovery was reported by eNCA.

Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi said the state would answer what he described as a war declared on the province’s women. “Someone has declared war against us and we will push back,” he said. “We’re not going to surrender. They have declared war and we have to return it. The state has the capacity.”

Lesufi said a multidisciplinary task team investigating the deaths was working around the clock and had already gathered evidence. “The groundwork has been done. No one must have doubts that we’re picking up bodies and there is no work being done,” he said.

He said the team briefs him hourly on the evidence it holds, and that he expects an early breakthrough. “They have cracked many big cases before, and I have no doubt that they will break this case. But we must give them space to gather evidence.”

What the police say

Gauteng acting police commissioner Fred Kekana said investigators had received a large amount of information that could assist the case. “The teams are busy following up each and every piece of information provided,” he said.

Kekana appealed to the public to stop sharing old photographs of bodies on social media. He said the practice was causing unnecessary panic.

What it means for people living here

The eight earlier deaths and now this one have left women in Ekurhuleni’s townships and suburbs carrying a changed daily routine. Routes home are being planned around light and company. Families in Dawn Park, Katlehong and the surrounding areas have spent two months waiting for an arrest, and Thursday’s discovery extends that wait.

The task team’s work is the thing that ends it. Lesufi’s confidence in the investigators is a statement about resources and mandate, not a result. Until a court has a case, the practical position for residents is the same as it was on Wednesday: a heavy police presence, an appeal for information, and no one in custody.

Anyone with information on any of the nine deaths can contact the SAPS Crime Stop line on 08600 10111, or pass information through the MySAPS app.