Photo via BBC News

South African president vows justice as more women's bodies found near Johannesburg

Read the original at BBC News ↗
Cite

Ngcobo, K. (2026, September 15). South African president vows justice as more women's bodies found near Johannesburg. BBC News. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crgqde1nex2vo?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

BBC News · collected 2026-09-15 · by Khanyisile Ngcobo

Quick Summary

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has pledged a thorough investigation into the killings of seven women found near Kempton Park, north-east of Johannesburg, over the past two months. Police have discovered another body recently and while they have made one arrest, no direct link to a serial killer has been established yet. The president emphasized that law enforcement is prioritizing these cases to ensure justice and safety for communities, particularly women, amid rising concerns about gender-based violence in South Africa.
Written by AI on 2026-09-15, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

South African police are investigating the deaths of nine women whose bodies were discovered near Johannesburg over two months. The killings have raised fears of a serial killer or multiple perpetrators targeting women in Ekurhuleni and Kempton Park areas east of Johannesburg. Some victims were found naked, showing signs of sexual violence, causing widespread alarm and condemnation from civil society groups. President Cyril Ramaphosa vowed that "no stone will be left unturned" to bring the killers to justice. While police have not confirmed a serial killer, they are intensifying investigations due to similarities in the cases and urging public caution.

Written for “South African Women Killings Investig…” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 22 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 South African Women Killings Investig…
Crime & Law · 23 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 15% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
The Straits Times
Hedges 1 of 12 claims Outlet record 66/100
Toronto Star
Hedges 4 of 21 claims Outlet record 64/100
Toronto Star
Hedges 4 of 18 claims Outlet record 64/100
South China Morning Post
Hedges 1 of 5 claims Outlet record 64/100
The Independent
Hedges 4 of 22 claims Outlet record 59/100
The Straits Times
⚖️ Leans left Hedges 1 of 12 claims Outlet record 66/100
“While both articles discuss a series of killings near Johannesburg, they describe different moments in time: Article A reports on an incident involving seven bodies discovered over two months, while Article B mentions the discovery of a ninth body specifically on Thursday.”
BBC News
Hedges 1 of 57 claims Outlet record 68/100
Al Jazeera
Hedges 0 of 3 claims Outlet record 60/100
“While both articles discuss the ongoing issue of femicide in South Africa, they refer to different numbers of victims and appear to cover separate developments in an evolving crisis rather than a single incident.”
Al Jazeera
Hedges 2 of 39 claims Outlet record 60/100
“The articles refer to a series of incidents over two months but describe different findings; Article A discusses a body found on Tuesday leading to an investigation including seven deaths, while Article B mentions the discovery of a ninth victim on Thursday.”
CBS News
Hedges 2 of 21 claims Outlet record 66/100
“While both articles discuss a series of killings in South Africa, Article B reports on the discovery of a ninth body two days after the publication date of Article A, indicating it is describing a subsequent event rather than the same specific incident.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
20
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
15%
3 of 20 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
68/100
BBC News's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
23
Crime & Law
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-09-15 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

BBC News · 4753 article(s) · 6 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 6 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Khanyisile Ngcobo
4 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
🔮 Police have since charged the couple, who were running the facility, with kidnapping but could add more charges.
🔮 This has led to police believing she may have been stoned to death.
🔮 - Published South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has vowed that "no stone will be left unturned" in finding those behind the killings of several women in and around the town of Kempton Park, north-east of Johannesburg, over the last two months.
🔮 They would have to "provide full details" on the upcoming trip for "an informed assessment of the appropriate level of support required and any associated reputational, political, diplomatic or security risks", he said at a briefing on Wednesday.
Also by Khanyisile Ngcobo
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

Topics

Gauteng Johannesburg Kempton Park South Africa South Africa's

Subjects

Kempton Park GPE · 4× South Africa's GPE · 3× South Africa GPE · 2× Brig Athlenda Mathe PERSON · 1× Cyril Ramaphosa PERSON · 1× Elizabeth Moselakgomo PERSON · 1× Fred Kekana PERSON · 1× Johannesburg GPE · 1× Moselakgomo PERSON · 1× Ramaphosa PERSON · 1×

Narrative

"After noticing that there are bodies being picked up, we went back to our police stations… and unfortunately it came to light that a body of a female in her late 20s was observed in a river next to a mall," Maj-Gen Fred Kekana, acting police chief for Gauteng province, said at a briefing.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-15
🔮 - Published South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has vowed that "no stone will be left unturned" in finding those behind the killings of several women in and around the town of Kempton Park, north-east of Johannesburg, over the last two months.

Claims (20 extracted, 3 hedged)

- Published South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has vowed that "no stone will be left unturned" in finding those behind the killings of several women in and around the town of Kempton Park, north-east of Johannesburg, over the last two months. asserted
stone → publish → months
Another body was discovered on Tuesday morning and police say their investigation now includes the deaths of seven women most of whom have been found either partially or fully naked. asserted
most → discover → whom
"These incidents are causing fear and uncertainty in our communities, and especially among women," the president said. asserted
president → cause → women
Police say they are not linking the deaths to a serial killer at this stage, but are investigating the possibility that a group of people is behind the killings. asserted
group → say → killings
"[It] could be that it's a copycat crime that is happening right here but so far, no linkages as yet," police spokesperson Brig Athlenda Mathe said. uncertain
Mathe → happen → ?
One arrest has been made in connection with the discovery of the first body. asserted
arrest → make → body
So far only two of the seven women have been identified. asserted
women → identify → ?
On Monday, police said that one of them was Elizabeth Moselakgomo, a runner whose disappearance last week sparked a frantic and public search for her. asserted
disappearance → say → her
President Ramaphosa said he had directed that the cases be prioritised: "Our law enforcement agencies are working urgently to establish the facts, keep communities safe and bring the perpetrator or perpetrators to justice." asserted
agencies → say → justice
South Africa experiences some of the world's highest levels of gender-based violence (GBV), with the rate at which women are killed five times higher than the global average, according to UN Women. uncertain
women → experience → Women
The discoveries of the bodies have sparked outrage and fear across the country, with many criticising the authorities for failing to adequately protect women. asserted
many → spark → women
Moselakgomo was identified by her relatives on Monday after her body was discovered on Saturday. asserted
body → identify → Saturday
It was the 38-year-old's young daughter who raised the alarm about her disappearance after she failed to return from her daily run last Wednesday. asserted
she → raise → run
The body of the first woman was found in mid-July, the second in late August - the others were discovered this month, two in the last two days. asserted
others → find → days
On Tuesday, police said that the body of woman found on 7 September in a town nearby Kempton Park was also being included - bringing the total number of bodies being investigated to seven. asserted
body → say → seven
"After noticing that there are bodies being picked up, we went back to our police stations… and unfortunately it came to light that a body of a female in her late 20s was observed in a river next to a mall," Maj-Gen Fred Kekana, acting police chief for Gauteng province, said at a briefing. asserted
Kekana → notice → briefing
Police have urged women in the Kempton Park area - which is by South Africa's main international airport - to avoid walking or running alone "particularly in isolated areas". asserted
which → urge → areas
South Africa's Commission for Gender Equality urged residents of Kempton Park to work with the police to find the perpetrators. asserted
Commission → urge → perpetrators
"These deaths are indicative that women in South Africa continue to face environments in which their ordinary freedom of movement can become a matter of life and death," it said. asserted
it → continue → life
"Women should be able to run, walk to work, use public transport, return home, visit friends and participate in community life without having to calculate whether an ordinary activity could place their lives at risk." uncertain
activity → run → risk
💬Give feedback
🕘History 🎫Support