In the eastern reaches of Johannesburg, a 29-year-old woman named Elizabeth Moselakgomo left for a morning run and did not return — her body found days later, bruised and partially clothed, in a stretch of ground that has now yielded five women's remains in all. Her death arrives not as an isolated tragedy but as a stark illumination of a deeper wound: South Africa's femicide rate stands five times above the global average, a number that transforms individual grief into collective reckoning. A nation that has long known this violence is being asked, again, whether knowing is enough.
Missing South African jogger found dead; five women's bodies discovered in same area
Elizabeth Moselakgomo, 29, was killed during a routine run; four other women's bodies found in same area; her 8-year-old daughter raised alarm about her disappearance.
You can't just go to the shop and buy flowers because you are always in danger
Mark
So Elizabeth Moselakgomo went missing during a run and was found dead. But why are the other four bodies being mentioned in the same story if police say they're not linked to a serial killer?
Mimi
Because the pattern itself is what matters here. Five women, same area, similar circumstances—all half-naked and bruised. Police won't call it a serial killer case, but they're concerned enough to issue a public warning. The clustering is what's alarming people.
Luke
Right, but we should be clear about what we actually know. One arrest has been made in connection with the first body. We don't know if that person is connected to the other four. We don't know if the other four deaths are even connected to each other. The "similarities" police mention—we're not told what those are specifically.
Mark
So it could be coincidence? Five women in one area in a short time?
Mimi
It could be. But in a country where women are killed at five times the global average, the fear isn't irrational. Whether these deaths are linked or not, they're happening in a context where women already don't feel safe.
Luke
That's true. And that context is real and documented. But we should separate what we know about Moselakgomo's death from what we're inferring about the others. Her case is clear. The others—we're waiting for identification, waiting for investigation.
Mark
What struck me was what Sefularo said about running with others. Is that actually protective, or is it just how women have learned to manage fear?
Mimi
Probably both. It's a real strategy—there's safety in numbers, literally. But it's also a symptom of the problem. Women shouldn't have to run in groups to feel safe doing something ordinary.
Luke
And we don't actually know if running alone was a factor in any of these deaths. We know Moselakgomo was jogging. We don't know the circumstances of the other four women's deaths at all—where they were, what they were doing, whether they were alone.
The Pulse
- Five women's bodies have been discovered in the same area east of Johannesburg, all bearing signs of brutal violence — a pattern alarming enough that police issued a public warning even while stopping short of naming a serial killer.
- An eight-year-old girl raised the alarm when her mother did not come home from a run, and it is her courage, alongside her loss, that has given this story its most human and devastating face.
- Women in South Africa are killed at five times the global average rate, and Moselakgomo's death has reignited outrage over a society where leaving the house — to run, to shop, simply to exist — requires constant calculation of risk.
- Advocates and community members are pushing back hard: one running club member questions whether a companion might have saved Moselakgomo's life, while an advocacy leader demands not new laws but the enforcement of those already written.
- Police have made one arrest in connection with the first body found, launched a task team, and urged women to avoid isolated areas — measures that many see as too reactive and far too small.
In the eastern reaches of Johannesburg, a 29-year-old woman named Elizabeth Moselakgomo left for a morning run and did not return — her body found days later, bruised and partially clothed, in a stretch of ground that has now yielded five women's remains in all. Her death arrives not as an isolated tragedy but as a stark illumination of a deeper wound: South Africa's femicide rate stands five times above the global average, a number that transforms individual grief into collective reckoning. A nation that has long known this violence is being asked, again, whether knowing is enough.
Elizabeth Moselakgomo left for a run east of Johannesburg last week and never came home. By Monday, her family had identified her body at a Kempton Park morgue — she was 29, badly bruised, partially clothed, and had been found two days earlier on a Saturday night. She left behind an eight-year-old daughter who had been the one to raise the alarm when her mother disappeared.
She was not the only woman found in that stretch of ground. Four other bodies have been discovered in the same area, all half-naked and bearing signs of violence. Police established a task team and made one arrest in connection with the first body, but stopped short of declaring the deaths the work of a single perpetrator — while acknowledging the pattern was serious enough to warrant a public warning.
The grief that followed was inseparable from fury. Keamo Sefularo, who knew Moselakgomo through their running club, told the BBC that being a woman in South Africa means constantly calculating danger in the most ordinary moments. UN Women data gives weight to that fear: South African women are killed at five times the global average rate. On social media, others asked how women can be free when every movement — where, when, with whom — must be weighed against the threat of violence.
Sefularo reflected on whether Moselakgomo might have survived had she run with others, describing her own precautions: varying routes, choosing open paths, never going alone. Merlize Jogiat of Women for Change went further, arguing that the failure is not legislative but one of enforcement — and that citizens must sustain pressure to force real change.
Moselakgomo's family thanked the public for their support during the search and honored her daughter's bravery. The four other women found nearby remain unidentified. The investigation continues, and South Africa waits — not for the first time — to learn who these women were, and to ask why it keeps having to ask.
Elizabeth Moselakgomo set out for a run last week in the area east of Johannesburg. She did not come home. By Monday, her relatives had identified her body at a morgue in Kempton Park, discovered two days earlier on Saturday night. She was 29 years old, badly bruised, and partially clothed. She left behind an eight-year-old daughter who had raised the alarm when her mother disappeared.
Moselakgomo was not alone in that stretch of ground. Four other women's bodies have been found in the same area, all of them half-naked and bearing signs of violence. Police have launched a task team to investigate, though they stopped short of declaring the deaths part of a single killer's work. Still, they acknowledged the pattern was alarming enough to warrant a public warning. One arrest has been made in connection with the first body discovered; that person remains in custody.
The news rippled outward. Keamo Sefularo, who knew Moselakgomo through their running club, spoke to the BBC about the weight of it. "It's very scary," she said. She reflected on what it means to be a woman in South Africa, where the simple act of leaving your house—to run, to shop, to exist—carries the constant calculation of danger. The statistics back her fear: women in South Africa are killed at a rate five times higher than the global average, according to UN Women. The country carries some of the world's highest levels of gender-based violence.
Tributes came quickly for the woman her running community called "Tsontso." But alongside the grief came something sharper: a renewed reckoning with the constraints women navigate daily. Lesedi Ledwaba posted on social media that women cannot be free if they must constantly weigh where, when, and with whom they can safely move through the world. Sefularo wondered aloud whether Moselakgomo might still be alive if she had run with others—a small group, even just one or two companions. "There's safety in numbers," she said, describing the precautions she herself takes: varying her route, choosing paths with good sightlines, never running alone.
Merlize Jogiat, from the advocacy group Women for Change, framed the discovery differently. She questioned the point of having police if women must become their own protection. The real failure, she argued, lies not in the laws themselves but in how poorly they are enforced. She called for sustained pressure from citizens to force change.
Moselakgomo's family released a statement thanking the public for their help in the search. They also singled out her daughter for her courage in alerting adults that her mother was missing. The remaining four bodies have not yet been identified. Police have urged women in Kempton Park to avoid walking or running alone, particularly in isolated areas. The investigation continues, and the country waits to learn who these women were and what happened to them.
Notable Quotes
It's sad to know that every woman in South Africa can't just go outside. You can't just go to the shop and buy flowers because you are always in danger.— Keamo Sefularo, runner who knew Moselakgomo
Women are not free if we have to calculate where, when and with whom we can walk, run or exist safely.— Lesedi Ledwaba, on social media
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