Female skull uncovered

The latest discovery of a human skull not far from where the headless torso of a female with its arms and legs removed was found, has added a new dimension to the mystery of the unknown murdered female. A passer-by discovered the torso in Katlehong in May.

The human head which was already in an advanced stage of decomposition was described by the spokesperson for the Katlehong SAPS, Capt Mega Ndobe, as that of a young female. “The skull was found by a resident who had gone to dispose of rubbish in the open space near his house. When the police arrived on the scene, they were shown a human skull which still had a hairpiece attached to the head, indicating that the skull is that of a female,” said Ndobe.

In May, Katlehong police were summoned to a scene in Siluma View, where the headless torso of a female was found. Despite an extensive search of the area by detectives, no other limbs linked to the body were found. And now, almost six months later, a human head has been found.

Although the case is being investigated by the provincial SAPS, Ndobe said the new discovery still has to be verified by the forensic division to determine whether it can be linked to the headless torso found in May.

At the time the torso was found, parts of the dismembered body seemed to have been burnt. Meanwhile all the other missing parts of the body such as legs and arms had been removed or cut off. At this stage, the police said they are unable to determine if the deceased may have been murdered elsewhere and then transported to where it was found in Katlehong.

Kathorus MAIL was unable to confirm with the provincial police spokesperson, Capt Khabo Mohlane, if a postmortem has been conducted on the skull to see if it belongs to the headless torso found in May. But Ndobe confirmed that more details would only be given by the provincial police.

However, the Katlehong police are still appealing to members of the public with a missing female family member to come forward and assist the police to identify the dead woman. “We are requesting members of the community to come forward with any information that may help detectives in their investigations, said Ndobe.