EKURHULENI, South Africa — Police say the killing of Jabulile Ntimba, the ninth woman added to the wider Ekurhuleni investigation, appears to have a separate motive involving a personal relationship. One man and two women arrested in connection with her death appeared in the Boksburg Magistrate's Court on Monday.
The update is important because it weakens the assumption that every death under review has the same offender or motive. Police are still investigating all nine cases through a strengthened multidisciplinary team, but they have repeatedly said the evidence has not established a single serial killer.
Police have not confirmed that they are. Deputy National Police Commissioner Tebello Mosikili said the ninth case, involving Jabulile Ntimba, appears connected to a personal relationship dispute. Three people were arrested in that case, while investigations into the other deaths continue separately.
What police said about the ninth case
Deputy National Police Commissioner Tebello Mosikili said the death of Ntimba appears linked to what police described as a love triangle, according to SABC News. That is an investigative assessment, not a court finding.
Ntimba's body was found in Villa Liza near Dawn Park on 17 September. Members of the Gauteng Murder and Robbery Unit arrested one man and two women over the weekend. SABC's earlier report attributed the arrests to national police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe.
The three suspects appeared in the Boksburg Magistrate's Court on Monday, according to The South African. Accessible reporting at XTRAfrica's cutoff did not provide a charge sheet, plea, bail ruling or next court date. Their identities and precise charges should not be inferred before the court record is available.
An arrest is not proof of guilt. The state's allegations must still be tested in court.
Why this changes the wider Ekurhuleni story
Public discussion has often grouped the nine deaths together because bodies were found across Ekurhuleni over roughly two months. Similarities in some scenes prompted a coordinated investigation, but police have also reported different methods and possible motives.
JUSTICE & CRIME
Ninth Ekurhuleni Case Appears Separately Motivated
Sep 21, 2026
Sep 21, 2026
4 min read
Published
Updated:
EKURHULENI, South Africa — Police say the killing of Jabulile Ntimba, the ninth woman added to the wider Ekurhuleni investigation, appears to have a separate motive involving a personal relationship. One man and two women arrested in connection with her death appeared in the Boksburg Magistrate's Court on Monday.
The update is important because it weakens the assumption that every death under review has the same offender or motive. Police are still investigating all nine cases through a strengthened multidisciplinary team, but they have repeatedly said the evidence has not established a single serial killer.
Police have not confirmed that they are. Deputy National Police Commissioner Tebello Mosikili said the ninth case, involving Jabulile Ntimba, appears connected to a personal relationship dispute. Three people were arrested in that case, while investigations into the other deaths continue separately.
What police said about the ninth case
Deputy National Police Commissioner Tebello Mosikili said the death of Ntimba appears linked to what police described as a love triangle, according to SABC News. That is an investigative assessment, not a court finding.
Ntimba's body was found in Villa Liza near Dawn Park on 17 September. Members of the Gauteng Murder and Robbery Unit arrested one man and two women over the weekend. SABC's earlier report attributed the arrests to national police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe.
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The three suspects appeared in the Boksburg Magistrate's Court on Monday, according to The South African. Accessible reporting at XTRAfrica's cutoff did not provide a charge sheet, plea, bail ruling or next court date. Their identities and precise charges should not be inferred before the court record is available.
An arrest is not proof of guilt. The state's allegations must still be tested in court.
Why this changes the wider Ekurhuleni story
Public discussion has often grouped the nine deaths together because bodies were found across Ekurhuleni over roughly two months. Similarities in some scenes prompted a coordinated investigation, but police have also reported different methods and possible motives.
The new disclosure about Ntimba's case is the clearest public indication that at least one investigation may follow a distinct path. It does not rule out links among any of the other cases, and it does not solve the broader pattern.
XTRAfrica's earlier Kempton Park investigation explainer documented why police were comparing the cases while warning against declaring a serial offender without evidence. A later report explained the forensic evidence police disclosed in several Kempton Park cases.
The government's latest emergency response update raised the confirmed investigation count to nine and set out national coordination, expanded deployments and support for families.
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The investigative team has been strengthened
Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia said the multidisciplinary team is now headed by Lieutenant-General Hilda Senthumule. KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi and Crime Intelligence head Lieutenant-General Dumisani Khumalo are assisting, The South African reported.
The South African government's emergency strategy also calls for national detective coordination, intensified Operation Shanela deployments, environmental safety measures and support for affected families.
SABC reported that police have forensic, data and fingerprint specialists working on the cases. Those tools can help establish whether locations, communications, vehicles, DNA or other evidence connect particular investigations.
The presence of a national team should not be read as proof that the deaths share a perpetrator. It allows authorities to compare evidence while still investigating different motives.
What remains unconfirmed
Police have not publicly established that one person or group is responsible for all nine deaths. One victim remained unidentified in the government's latest briefing, while another name was withheld until relatives could be informed.
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The tenth body found in Soweto over the weekend is being handled as an inquest. Mosikili confirmed its discovery, but police had not linked it to the Ekurhuleni cases by the cutoff.
Social-media posts naming supposed suspects or circulating graphic images should not be treated as evidence. The government has warned against sharing unverified material, which can harm families and compromise investigations.
The next reliable milestones are the Boksburg court record, formal charges, any bail decision and a police statement explaining how evidence supports the alleged motive. Investigators must also continue identifying victims and testing possible connections among the remaining cases.
For readers, the safest summary is precise: three people have been arrested in Ntimba's death, police say that case appears separately motivated, and the wider Ekurhuleni investigation remains open.
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