Police have launched a murder investigation after the body of a 14-year-old girl was discovered in Durban Deep, Roodepoort, in western Johannesburg. The grim find was made by a passerby who alerted authorities after spotting the victim’s remains beneath a shrub on Tuesday.
Authorities confirmed in a statement that the suspects remain unknown, and no arrests have been made. The case has sent shockwaves through the community, particularly as the location is the same area where the body of Tshegofatso Pule was found in June 2020.
The Tshegofatso Pule Foundation, an organization established in memory of the slain 28-year-old woman, expressed deep distress over the latest killing. In an emotional statement, foundation representatives said the incident has reopened old wounds, coming just days before the fourth anniversary of Pule’s murder.
“We received a call regarding the discovery of a 14-year-old girl who was found brutally murdered, with her genitalia mutilated,” a foundation spokesperson said. “It is something so heart-wrenching—we cannot even begin to wrap our heads around how to console the family or make sense of this. Why would someone do this to an innocent young girl?”
The spokesperson added that the tragedy has brought back painful memories of Pule’s case, in which she was found stabbed and hanged. “It is happening in the same area where her body was found, and just three days before the commemoration of her death,” they said.
Community members and activists are calling for urgent action to address gender-based violence, as South Africa continues to grapple with high rates of femicide and violent crimes against women and children. Police have urged anyone with information to come forward as investigations continue.