17 days of hope and horror: Family’s agony after Itumeleng Kekana found among Kempton Park victims - IOL

For 17 days, Themba Kekana and his family searched for his younger sister, Itumeleng, hoping against hope that they would find her alive.

They travelled from QwaQwa to Kempton Park, visited police stations, hospitals, clinics and mortuaries, and searched open fields, bushes and dumping sites. 

They called her phone repeatedly and checked messages in the family WhatsApp group, but there was no response.

Then, on August 3, the call they had feared finally came: a woman's body had been found near a river along the R21.

Themba and other relatives rushed to the scene. 

They found Itumeleng's body partially clothed, with bruises and injuries to her face. 

Her face was unrecognisable, leaving the family struggling to comprehend what had happened to her.

The 32-year-old, who was originally from QwaQwa, had been living in Kempton Park with her boyfriend. 

She was the second woman whose body was discovered in the area during a period in which police have since begun investigating possible links between the deaths of eight women found across Ekurhuleni.

Themba said he had spoken to his sister that day. It was also his 44th birthday, and Itumeleng called to wish him well.

“That was the last time I spoke with her and she then disappeared,” he said.

Themba said the family later learned from one of Itumeleng's colleagues that she had been chatting on her phone at about 7pm when she suddenly got up and said she would be back.

That was the last time she was seen alive.

The colleague initially believed Itumeleng had gone to meet a client because she sold beauty and household products and also worked as a tailor.

The following day, the colleague contacted the family to tell them that Itumeleng had gone missing.

“We tried to ask her what happened to her and how she disappeared, but she said she didn’t know what happened to her,” Themba told IOL.

According to him, Itumeleng was not someone who usually went out without telling her family where she was going.

She was also normally reachable by phone and regularly communicated with her family through their WhatsApp group.

But after she disappeared, her phone stopped going through and she stopped responding to messages.

Police are investigating the deaths of eight women whose bodies were discovered at various locations across Ekurhuleni.

Themba travelled from QwaQwa in the Fre State to Kempton Park on July 19, to join the search.

The family first went to the Kempton Park police station with Itumeleng's boyfriend. From there, their search expanded to hospitals, clinics and mortuaries.

They also searched open areas, bushes and dumping sites.

“We were not even sure where we should go because we searched for her almost everywhere,” Themba said.

The search was emotionally and physically exhausting.

“It was very painful and difficult going through all different places searching for her, and we had so many questions without answers of what might have happened to her. We couldn’t even eat at all because we were worried about her,” he said.

As the days passed without any sign of Itumeleng, the family's fears grew.

Themba said they continued praying that she would return home alive.

“Even if she comes back dead, we will accept that we found her, even though it would be harder for the family than if we don’t find her,” he said.

On August 3, a man travelling to work reportedly spotted the body of a woman and alerted authorities.

The family was called to the scene.

“When we arrived there, we found her partially naked, and her face was unrecognisable because she had bruises,” Themba said.

The family positively identified the body as Itumeleng.

Themba said the condition of her body left the family with more questions about what had happened to her.

“We really didn't understand what had happened to her when we arrived at the scene. We couldn’t believe what we saw or what might have happened,” he said.

The family has since called on police to investigate CCTV footage from a camera near where Itumeleng's body was found.

“There is CCTV footage not far from where we found her body and we hope the police will analyse the footage and help us understand what happened to her,” Themba told IOL.

He said police had promised the family that they would examine the footage.

Amid the painful circumstances surrounding her death, Themba wants his sister to be remembered for who she was in life.

Itumeleng loved football, particularly when Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs played.

“She loved football with all her heart. Her favourite football team was Orlando Pirates,” he said.

“She was someone who was informed by football games and would even tell us when teams were going to play. We are going to mostly miss her with that.”

Themba said he last saw his sister in person during the Easter holidays. Although they were separated by distance, they remained in regular contact.

Before her disappearance, they spoke about life and her efforts to build her work in Gauteng.

“She said she was busy pushing her work in Gauteng, but money was not coming together,” he said.

Itumeleng was laid to rest in QwaQwa on August 22.

Her 14-year-old daughter is now living with her grandparents.

Themba said the teenager has struggled to understand and accept her mother's death.

“The death of her mother, especially after we searched for her almost everywhere and later found her dead, has been very difficult for her to accept. She’s really struggling to come to terms with the death of her mother,” he said.

Police have offered a R400,000 reward for information that could assist in identifying and arresting those responsible for the deaths.

Itumeleng's death came as police began investigating a series of women's bodies found dumped at different locations in Ekurhuleni.

The first body was discovered on July 15, when a 37-year-old woman was found naked and restrained with cable ties in an open field in Kempton Park.

A suspect, reportedly the victim's partner, was arrested in connection with her murder on July 17.

On August 3, Itumeleng's body was found in Kempton Park.

On September 7, the body of a woman believed to be in her late 20s was found in a river in Clayville, Olifantsfontein, near Thembisa Mall. 

Police said the woman was found without clothing apart from underwear.

Another unidentified woman's body was discovered in Olifantsfontein on the same day.

On September 10, an unidentified woman was found near Kempton Park. 

Her body was naked and in an advanced state of decomposition. Police were using forensic processes to establish her identity.

On September 12, the remains of 38-year-old Elizabeth “Tsontso” Moselakgomo were found partially naked and bruised in Rhodesfield, Kempton Park. 

Her family positively identified her on September 14.

On September 14, another unidentified woman's body was found in Olifantsfontein after a passer-by alerted authorities. 

Police said the body was partially naked and bruised.

On September 15, the body of an unidentified woman believed to be in her 30s was found in Kwa-Thema, Springs. 

Her body was naked and in a state of decomposition.

Police have said they are examining the cases to determine whether there is a link between them.

Addressing the media on Tuesday night in Johannesburg, acting National Police Commissioner Puleng Dimpane has appealed to families with missing relatives in the area to come forward and assist investigators in identifying the victims.

She also announced a R400,000 reward for information that could lead to the arrest of those responsible for the deaths.

Meanwhile, for the Kekana family, the investigation remains deeply personal.

“We call on the police to investigate the matter and find out what happened to her and arrest those who are responsible for her tragic death,” Themba said.