The convicted serial killer who raped and murdered three women in 2018 and 2019 in Thabong, has been given four life sentences for triple murder and three counts of rape.
On 4 February 2018 the bodies of two women, aged 36 and 39 years, were found abandoned in a garbage pile near the Thubelisha Cemetery in Thabong.
They had suffered multiple injuries to their eyes, were disemboweled, and had their remains hanging on a nearby wire fence. Both were half-naked.
These gruesome cases were assigned to Det. WO Gerrie Nel of the Thabong Serious and Violent Crimes unit for investigation.
Later that same year, on 26 November, a 44-year-old woman registered a case of attempted murder and assault. The suspect was found not-guilty and discharged on 25 March 2019 by the Welkom Magistrates’ Court.
On 16 April 2019 the same woman’s body was found murdered in the same way as the incidents in February 2018. Her body was also dumped in a garbage pile near the same cemetery in Thabong. This docket was also assigned to Nel. His investigation led to the arrest of Benedict Tshediso Rantsheuoa (37) in November 2020.
He was found guilty by the Virginia High Court and on 15 June this year.
Brig. Mzondi Mojafi, acting district commissioner of Lejweleputswa, applauded Nel for a thorough investigation and dedication, which ensured that the accused was declared a serial killer by the court.
