Authorities reported that two separate shootings in Johannesburg and Cape Town, South Africa, resulted in the deaths of 27 individuals over the night from Saturday to Sunday. Of this total, eight victims have been identified this month.
The most recent body was located today at noon local time in an open field area belonging to the Ekurhuleni municipality. A police spokesperson, Brenda Muridili, stated that the body was spotted by a security company vehicle patrolling the region and promptly alerted the authorities.
To date, no data has been released regarding the identity, age, or cause of death of this woman. This finding follows another incident on Saturday when a female body was found near a cemetery in the same municipality.
Tommy Mthombeni, provincial police chief, clarified that the previous victim appeared to have been struck by stones to death, and an autopsy will be performed to determine the circumstances of death. The police also announced the arrest of a man associated with the homicide, located approximately 400 kilometers from the crime scene.
With this arrest, the number of people arrested in this case rises to four. However, the police have not yet been able to establish any connection between the various homicides recorded. The other nine victims were mostly young people aged between 20 and 30; some were found naked and showed signs of sexual assault.
Rates of violence against women in South Africa, which was declared a national catastrophe at the end of 2025, rank among the highest in the world despite announced government efforts to eradicate it. In the first 16 days of September, the emergency hotline of the public body responsible for combating this violence received 6,782 calls for help, equivalent to a daily average of 424, representing a 21% increase compared to the same period in August.