South African police discover body of 11th woman near Johannesburg

Police are investigating the killings in a country with one of the highest femicide rates in the world.

South African police and pathologists inspect the body of a woman found on the side of a road near Johannesburg earlier this month [File: Kim Ludbrook/EPA]

South African police have discovered the body of another woman east of the country’s commercial capital, Johannesburg, bringing the total number of female bodies found near the city since mid-July to 11.

Police said on Sunday that the latest victim was found in an open field in the Ekurhuleni municipality at about midday local time (10am GMT).

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“A security company vehicle patrolling the area noticed the body and alerted the police,” police spokeswoman Brigadier Brenda Muridili said.

Details about the woman’s identity, age and cause of death were not immediately available.

Just one day earlier, on Saturday, the body of a semi-naked woman was found near a cemetery in the same municipality.

The latest discoveries add to growing concern over violence against women in a country long plagued by violent crime. While police work to establish whether the killings are connected, there have been community concerns that the murders are being carried out by the same killer or killers.

Provincial police chief Tommy Mthombeni said the victim found on Saturday appeared to have been stoned to death, but a post-mortem examination would be conducted to determine the cause of death.

Police said a man linked to the killing was arrested almost 400km (250 miles) away. His arrest brings the number of people in custody in connection with the series of killings to four.

President Cyril Ramaphosa acknowledged the recovery of the body of the 10th victim while on the campaign trail for upcoming local elections, broadcaster eNCA reported.

“I’ve sadly heard about 10th body of a woman found in Thembisa,” Ramaphosa said on Saturday. “This continues to make us very sad, and in many ways, it’s a shame on the men of South Africa that we continue to kill the women of our beautiful country.”

South Africa has one of the highest femicide rates in the world, with an average of 15 women killed per day.

Two women have been charged with the murder of the woman whose body was the ninth discovered on September 17. Police have said the killing may have stemmed from a relationship-related matter.

Mthombeni, the provincial police chief, told state broadcaster SABC that investigators believe the ninth killing was an isolated case. However, he said it is possible some of the other killings are connected.

He added that some of the murders shared similarities, but cautioned that there is no conclusive evidence to suggest the same person or group is responsible.

Police discovered three bodies in July and August within 6km (4 miles) of one another in Ekurhuleni. Earlier this month, six bodies were found in 10 days, also in Ekurhuleni.

Prior to Saturday’s discovery, all of the deceased women were in their 20s or 30s. Several of them were found completely or partially naked.

The first body, discovered in mid-July, was found naked and restrained with cable ties. The victim’s boyfriend was subsequently arrested, but no charges were filed.

警方正在调查这起谋杀案，该国是世界上女性谋杀率最高的国家之一。

本月初，南非警方和病理学家在约翰内斯堡附近的一条路边发现了一具女性尸体，并对其进行了检查。[图片：Kim Ludbrook/EPA]

南非警方在该国商业首都约翰内斯堡以东发现了另一名女性的尸体，使得自 7 月中旬以来在该市附近发现的女性尸体总数达到 11 具。

警方周日表示，最新一名受害者于当地时间中午（格林尼治标准时间上午 10 点）在埃库鲁莱尼市的一片空地上被发现。

南非性别事务专员：在杀害女性危机中，女性遭到“猎杀”

列表 2/3 “这是一场战争”：南非与杀害女性罪行作斗争，女性尸体堆积如山

南非发现九名女性遗体，引发恐惧和愤怒：我们目前掌握的信息（共3条，此为第3条）

警方发言人布伦达·穆里迪利准将说：“一辆在附近巡逻的保安公司车辆发现了尸体，并通知了警方。”

目前尚不清楚该女子的身份、年龄和死因。

就在前一天，也就是星期六，在同一市镇的一处墓地附近发现了一具半裸女尸。

最新发现加剧了人们对这个长期饱受暴力犯罪困扰的国家中针对女性的暴力问题的担忧。警方正在努力查明这些谋杀案是否有关联，但社区民众担心这些谋杀案是由同一或几个凶手所为。

省警察局长汤米·姆托姆贝尼表示，周六发现的受害者似乎是被石头砸死的，但将进行尸检以确定死因。

警方称，一名与这起谋杀案有关的男子在距离案发现场近400公里（250英里）的地方被捕。他的落网使因这一系列谋杀案而被拘留的人数增至四人。

据 eNCA 广播公司报道，总统西里尔·拉马福萨在为即将到来的地方选举进行竞选活动期间，确认了第十名遇难者遗体的找到。

“我悲痛地得知，在滕比萨发现了第十具女性遗体，”拉马福萨周六表示。“这让我们感到非常悲痛，从很多方面来说，南非男人继续杀害我们美丽国家的女性，这是一种耻辱。”

南非是世界上女性谋杀率最高的国家之一，平均每天有 15 名女性被杀害。

两名女子被控谋杀9月17日发现的第九具女性尸体。警方表示，这起谋杀案可能与感情纠纷有关。

省警察局长姆托姆贝尼告诉南非国家广播公司（SABC），调查人员认为第九起谋杀案是一起孤立事件。但他表示，其他一些谋杀案可能存在关联。

他还补充说，有些谋杀案有相似之处，但他同时警告说，目前还没有确凿的证据表明是同一个人或同一个团伙所为。

警方于7月和8月在埃库鲁莱尼相距6公里（4英里）的范围内发现了三具尸体。本月初，埃库鲁莱尼在10天内又发现了六具尸体。

在周六的发现之前，所有遇难女性的年龄都在20岁到30岁之间。其中几人被发现时全身或半裸。

第一具尸体于七月中旬被发现，当时她赤身裸体，双手被扎带捆绑。受害者的男友随后被捕，但未被起诉。