Tenth woman’s death added to Gauteng inquiry as two face court in separate case

South African police have widened their investigation into the deaths of women in Gauteng after an unidentified woman was found in a dam in Moroka, Soweto, on Sunday. Her death is being examined alongside nine cases in Ekurhuleni, although police say they have not established that the cases are connected.

The woman found in Soweto is believed to have been in her twenties. Her body was wrapped in a blanket or duvet when it was recovered from the dam. Investigators have opened a separate case while checking whether the circumstances overlap with any of the deaths recorded east of Johannesburg since July.

Deputy National Police Commissioner Lieutenant-General Tebello Mosikili said the Soweto case had been added to the broader investigation. Detectives, crime-intelligence officers, forensic specialists and profilers are working across the cases, but police have cautioned that there is still no evidence confirming that a serial offender is responsible.

Police have also made progress in the investigation into the ninth Ekurhuleni victim, who has been identified as Jabulile Ntimba. Her body was found at a development site in Villa Liza, near Dawn Park, on Thursday.

Two women, Fortunate Masilela and Tsakane Msithini, appeared in the Boksburg Magistrate’s Court on Monday on charges linked to Ntimba’s murder. They also face charges of defeating or obstructing the course of justice. They were remanded in custody until 1 October for a formal bail application.

A man who had been taken into custody with the two women was released after police said there was not enough evidence to charge him within the legally permitted detention period. Mosikili said investigators were continuing to test whether Ntimba’s killing had any connection to the other eight Ekurhuleni deaths, while treating the court case separately from the wider inquiry.

The discovery in Soweto brings the number of women’s deaths under scrutiny in the broader Gauteng inquiry to ten. Eight of the nine Ekurhuleni victims have been identified, according to police reporting cited by Eyewitness News. Authorities have increased police visibility and brought senior national and provincial officers into the investigation as communities demand answers.

Police continue to ask anyone with information to contact Crime Stop on 08600 10111. Information can be provided anonymously.

Sources: Eyewitness News, 21 September 2026; Sowetan, 21 September 2026; Africanews, 21 September 2026; South African Police Service.