The decomposed body of a woman was found in the ceiling of a house in Minnaar Street in Balfour, Mpumalanga, on Tuesday.

The discovery was made just after 11:00 after, according to provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Selvy Mohlala, the police received a complaint of a bad odour coming from the house.

“Upon the police’s arrival, they found a woman who said she had moved in about a month ago to stay with the father of her child. The police began to check the house to determine where the odour was coming from. At first, the ceiling trapdoor did not show clearly what was inside, however, the members proceeded to the next room and broke into the ceiling. They then made the shocking discovery of a human body wrapped in clothes,” Mohlala said.

Emergency services were summoned to the scene.

“The body was in a decomposed state, in such a way that the gender could not be determined at that time, however, through the shoes the victim was wearing as well as nail polish and other features, it was determined to be a female.”

A murder case is being investigated by the police, mentioned Mohlala.

“On further questioning, the woman indicated that she too was concerned about the odour and even asked her partner about it, but he responded that it was due to rats. When she was asked the whereabouts of her companion, the woman indicated that she had last seen him on October 1, when he indicated he was going to pay some accounts and then vanished. The deceased has yet to be identified.

“The investigators believe that Thabo Silas Tsotetsi could assist the investigation and therefore, we urge anyone who might know his whereabouts or have information that might help the investigation, to contact Detective Sergeant Moeketsi Mofokeng on 072 351 3801. Alternatively, call the Crime Stop number on 08600 10111 or send information via the My SAPS app. All received information will be treated as confidential and callers may opt to remain anonymous.”

The provincial police commissioner, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Manamela, condemned the incident in the strongest possible terms.

“This is really heart-breaking for a woman to be murdered and her body concealed like that. We strongly suspect this is another gender-based violence incident, but hope and trust that the person behind this murder will feel the full might of the law.”