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The family of Elizabeth “Tsontso” Moselakgomo formally identified her remains at the Germiston mortuary on Monday after the 38-year-old vanished during an evening run in Kempton Park the previous week, the South African Police Service reported. Her body was discovered on 12 September behind a hotel in the Rhodesfield area, partially clothed in workout attire and showing signs of injury, according to police statements that noted initial difficulties in visual confirmation due to facial trauma. The identification comes as part of a wider investigation into the deaths of at least four other women whose bodies were recovered in similar conditions near the R21 highway since mid-July, with one suspect already in custody from an earlier case. Family members had joined volunteers from Renegades Search and Rescue in an extensive search that included the distribution of missing person flyers after her eight-year-old daughter raised the alarm when she failed to return home.
Moselakgomo had left her Rhodesfield residence around 18:00 on 9 September for what was described as a routine jog, a habit she maintained regularly either alone or with others, according to accounts provided by family spokesperson Dawn Gounden to News24. She worked as a centre manager at Festival Mall and was remembered by relatives as a devoted mother and churchgoer who loved music and running, her uncle Lt-Col Andries Moraka Matlala told the Mail & Guardian. The discovery of her body, listed as the fourth in a cluster of cases by IOL, has intensified community concerns in Gauteng, where police have established a multidisciplinary task team to examine potential links between the incidents.
A second woman’s body was found near the R21 on 24 August while a third, in an advanced state of decomposition, was recovered on 10 September, the South African Police Service detailed in updates that described most victims as partially clothed or naked with bruising. The first case in July involved a 37-year-old found restrained with cable ties, leading to an arrest two days later, according to the same police briefings. Acting National Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Puleng Dimpane stated that the task team would intensify efforts to determine the circumstances of Moselakgomo’s death and hold those responsible accountable, adding in a statement that the loss under such conditions is devastating.
Gounden described the period since the disappearance as an emotional rollercoaster for the family, which had hoped for a safe return, in remarks reported by News24. “The past few days have been an emotional rollercoaster for us. We searched tirelessly for Elizabeth and circulated missing-person flyers in the hope that information would lead to her safe return,” Gounden said. She also noted that women should not have to live in fear of where they go, echoing a sentiment of alarm that has spread locally as residents question safety for everyday activities like jogging.
The South African Police Service has documented the recovery of more than 20,000 missing persons since 2020, with over 17,000 reunited with families including thousands of minors, according to figures released by the force and cited in The Citizen. These statistics encompass adults, children and drownings but underscore the resources devoted to such cases nationwide, even as gender-based violence and targeted crimes against women persist in parts of Gauteng. Police have stressed that there is no waiting period to report a missing person, urging prompt action to aid investigations like the one now focused on the Kempton Park cluster.
Moselakgomo leaves behind her young daughter, extended family and friends who viewed her as the glue of the household, Matlala told the Mail & Guardian in reflections that highlighted her preference for home life outside of running and work. KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli extended condolences in a statement that described her as a runner, mother, daughter, sister and friend with dreams and a future that mattered, warning against becoming numb to such deaths. The police continue to appeal for any information that could assist the task team as post-mortem results and forensic analysis are completed before the body is released for funeral arrangements.
