The body of a woman found dead on the side of a road in Pietermaritzburg on Tuesday has not yet been identified.
According to reports, the woman’s decomposing body was found by a man scavenging for recyclable products in an illegal dump site on Copesville Drive. When he discovered the body, the man alerted nearby community members who then alerted the police. Police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said the woman’s hands were tied behind her back and her body had multiple burn wounds. He said the motive for the killing is currently under investigation.The Mountain Rise SAPS have opened a case of murder.
“Police are calling for anybody who has a family member or an acquaintance missing to come forward and identify the body,” he said.
Investigations at an early stage
Sham Govender, chairperson of the Mountain Rise Community Policing Forum (CPF), said any loss of life is a concern, and that this matter was an isolated incident. Govender said the police were working closely with the community to gather as much details about the incident as possible. He said investigations were still in the early stages and thus far no one has come forward to report a woman missing from the Mountain Rise area.
“We ask the community and public to adhere to basic safety rules and precautions. Notify your family of your location if you are leaving home or a public space. Inform your family or close friends who you are with. If you are socialising, make sure you are in the company of people you know and drink responsibly. Activate tracking devices on your phone that can assist, and always reach out for help if you are in an abusive relationship,” Govender advised.
Camera’s proposed to monitor area
Ravi Madhan, a member of the Copesville CPF Community in Blue initiative said the crime rate in the area is low and this incident has come as a shock to the community.
“The community is concerned about this incident. Although it is in an isolated area of Copesville we conduct regular patrols along this road. I will consider motivating for cameras to be installed along the main roads to monitor vehicles that are entering and leaving,” he said.
East-Rand Gauteng
Similar incidents of women’s bodies being dumped in open fields are playing out in Gauteng. The grim body count on the East Rand has risen to nine, after another woman’s body was found on Thursday, in Ekurhuleni, police said.
Eight other women have been found dead in and around the area since July, and police are investigating whether the killings are linked. Gauteng acting provincial commissioner Major General Fred Kekana told the media on Thursday that the latest body was found in Dawn Park, Ekurhuleni.
He said preliminary investigations indicated that the woman’s remains had been dumped there.The first body, that of a 37-year-old woman, was found naked and bound with cable ties in an open field near the R21 in Kempton Park on July 15.
