Police name nine Ekurhuleni murder victims and arrest three suspects in Dawn Park

The South African Police Service has named the nine women murdered across Ekurhuleni since July, and arrested three suspects in connection with the most recent killing.

The three were taken into custody on Monday, 21 September 2026, in connection with the death of Gracious Nkomo, whose body was found in Dawn Park the previous week wrapped in a sheet. Police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe released the names of the nine victims the same day.

As The Citizen reported on 21 September, the police disclosed the names after what the service described as a breakthrough in the case.

The nine women

The victims, in the order their bodies were found:

• Busisiwe Mahlangu, found in Kempton Park on 15 July 2026
• Itumeleng Kekana, found in Kempton Park on 3 August 2026
• Nomfesane Mjobo, found in Kempton Park on 26 August 2026
• An unidentified woman found floating in the Clayville River in Olifantsfontein on 7 September 2026
• Gracious Nkomo, found in Kempton Park on 10 September 2026
• Elizabeth Moselakgomo, found in Kempton Park on 12 September 2026
• A woman whose name is being withheld until her family has been informed, found in Olifantsfontein on 14 September 2026
• Dineo Motapane, found in Kwa-Thema on 15 September 2026
• Jabulile Ntimba, found in Dawn Park on 17 September 2026

Five of the women were found in Kempton Park, two in Olifantsfontein, one in Kwa-Thema and one in Dawn Park.

Tenth body and inquest

Gauteng police also opened an inquest on Monday after the body of a tenth woman was found in Soweto. According to police, she was wrapped in a duvet and dumped in a dam at Moroka on Sunday evening.

An inquest is a court-led inquiry into a death that is not immediately treated as a criminal matter. It does not by itself establish that a crime was committed, and it runs separately from a murder investigation.

Serial killer not confirmed

Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia said investigators have not confirmed that a serial killer is operating in Ekurhuleni, but that with nine women killed in recent months the possibility cannot be ruled out.

That is the position the police service has held publicly. Detectives are probing whether the cases are linked, and the killings have raised fears in Gauteng’s east of a predator moving between towns along the East Rand.

Ekurhuleni has also been identified as the province’s hotspot for kidnappings, which has added to public safety concerns in the region.

What happens next

The three suspects arrested in the Dawn Park case are expected to appear in court, where the state will have to place its evidence before a magistrate. The inquest into the Moroka death will run on its own track. Police have not said whether the nine Ekurhuleni cases and the Soweto death are being treated as connected.

The Enquirer will report the outcome of the court appearances when they happen.

Source: The Citizen, Ekurhuleni murders: These are the names of the women who were brutally murdered