# List of serial killers in South Africa

A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more people, with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. However, South Africa uses a more lenient definition of serial murder, defining it as, "The unlawful killing of two or more victims by the same offender(s), in separate events."

## Identified serial killers

| Name | Nickname / AKA | Years active | Proven victims | Possible victims | Status | Notes |
| Baninzi, Asande | | 2001 | 14 | 18 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Together with accomplice Mthutuzeli Nombewu, robbed and murdered people in the Cape Flats area |
| Barber, Peter Roy | The Laughing Killer | 1973–1979 | 3 | 4 | Executed in 1980 | English immigrant who murdered his mistresses and a 12-year-old girl in Pinetown after arguments |
| Basson, Pierre | The Insurance Killer, South Africa's First Recorded Serial Killer | 1903–1906 | 9 | 9+ | Committed suicide to avoid apprehension | Murdered people in Claremont, Cape Town so he could get their life insurance |
| Brown, John Frank | The Cross Dressing Killer(s) | 1993–1995 | 5 | 5 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Together with accomplice and lover Jacques Coetzee murdered other gay men around Johannesburg |
| Brandt, Brydon | | 1989–1997 | 4 | 5 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Murdered prostitutes and his roommates in the Eastern Cape |
| Burger, Cornelius | | 1936–1937 | 5 | 5 | Died in a psychiatric facility | Murdered prostitutes as revenge for contracting a venereal disease |
| Coetzee, Jacques | The Cross Dressing Killer(s) | 1993–1995 | 5 | 5 | Committed suicide in custody | Together with accomplice and lover John Frank Brown murdered other gay men around Johannesburg |
| Duma, Sibusiso | | 2007 | 7 | 7 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Killed various people around Pietermaritzburg during robberies |
| Kgabi, John Phuko | The Ritual Killer | 1974–1978 | 6 | 14 | Executed in 1980 | Former police officer who garroted and mutilated young girls in Atteridgeville and Limpopo |
| Lineveldt, Gamal | The Cape Flats Murderer | 1940 | 4 | 4 | Executed in 1941 | Responsible for the "Cape Flats Murders"; bludgeoned to death white women around the Cape Flats area |
| Maake, Cedric | The Wemmer Pan Killer | 1996–1997 | 27 | 27+ | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Serial rapist who murdered victims in the Wemmer Pan area |
| Mabhayi, Bulelani | The Monster of Tholeni | 2007–2012 | 20 | 20 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | House intruder who murdered women and children in the village of Tholeni |
| Majola, Simon | The Bruma Lake Killer(s) | 2000–2001 | 8 | 8+ | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Together with accomplice Themba Nkosi, known as "The Bruma Lake Killers"; robbed and drowned men in Bruma Lake |
| Makamu, Fanuel | The Mpumalanga Serial Rapist | 2000 | 6 | 6 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Together with accomplice Henry Maile, robbed, raped and murdered women around Mpumalanga |
| Maketta, Jimmy | The Jesus Killer | 2005 | 16 | 16 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Murdered farm labourers in Philippi |
| Makgae, Andries | | 2012–2013 | 3 | 4+ | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Raped and murdered women around Onderstepoort; suspected in best friend's murder |
| Makhubela, Dumisani | Lotto Gangster(s) | 2005 | 7 | 7 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Together with accomplice Johannes van Rooyen, robbed, raped and murdered people around Mpumalanga, including a family of four |
| Mashiane, Johannes | The Beast of Atteridgeville | 1977–1989 | 13 | 13 | Committed suicide to avoid apprehension | Murdered his girlfriend; after release, raped and strangled 12 young boys around Atteridgeville |
| de Melker, Daisy | South Africa's First Convicted Female Serial Killer | 1923–1932 | 3 | 3 | Executed in 1932 | Poisoned two husbands and her son with strychnine for life insurance |
| Mfeka, Samuel Bongani | The Kranskop Killer | 1993–1996 | 6 | 6+ | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Raped and strangled women around KwaZulu-Natal |
| Mogale, Jack | The West-End Killer | 2008–2009 | 16 | 16 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Kidnapped, raped and murdered women in southern Johannesburg |
| Msomi, Elifasi | The Axe Killer | 1953–1955 | 15 | 15 | Executed in 1956 | Murdered people while he was supposedly under the influence of a Tokoloshe |
| Mulaudzi, Mukosi Freddy | The Limpopo Serial Killer | 1990–2006 | 13 | 13 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Murdered two people in 1990, then escaped from prison and resumed killing |
| Ncama, Nicholas Lungisa | The East Cape Killer | 1997 | 6 | 6 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Raped and strangled women around Port Elizabeth |
| Ndlangamandla, Velaphi | The Saloon Killer | 1998 | 19 | 19 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Robbed and murdered people during home invasions in Mpumalanga |
| Ndlovu, Rosemary | | 2012–2018 | 6 | 6 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Former policewoman who murdered her ex-partner and relatives for life and funeral insurance policies |
| Ntsieni, Ndivhuwo | The Univen serial killer | 2014 | 5 | 5 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Raped and murdered women and young girls in and around the University of Venda |
| Nyauza, Richard | The Quarry Killer | 2002–2006 | 18 | 19 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Raped and murdered women after being infected with HIV, dumping their bodies in a quarry |
| Randitsheni, David | The Modimolle Serial Killer | 2004–2008 | 10 | 10 | Committed suicide in prison | Abducted, raped and murdered children in Modimolle |
| van Rooyen, Gert | | 1988–1989 | 6 | 6+ | Committed suicide to avoid apprehension | Pedophile who, together with accomplice and wife Joey Haarhoff, abducted, raped and murdered six teenage girls whose bodies have never been found |
| van Rooyen, Johannes | Lotto Gangster(s) | 2005 | 7 | 7 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Together with accomplice Dumisani Makhubela, robbed, raped and murdered people around Mpumalanga, including a family of four |
| van Schoor, Louis | The Apartheid Killer | 1986–1989 | 9 | 39+ | 20 years; released in the 2000s and died a free man in 2024 | Former policeman and security guard who killed black South Africans during alleged crimes |
| Sedumedi, Khangayi | The Century City Killer | 2011–2015 | 4 | 6 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Raped and murdered women around Century City and Kensington |
| Sidyno, Samuel | The Capital Park Serial Killer | 1998–1999 | 7 | 7 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Strangled teenagers and women, then disposed of their bodies near the Pretoria Zoo |
| Sithole, Moses | The ABC Killer | 1994–1995 | 38 | 76 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Raped and murdered women around Atteridgeville, Boksburg and Cleveland |
| Stander, Riaan | | 2001–2007 | 3 | 3 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Murdered two prostitutes in Port Elizabeth after being released from prison for running over a woman with his car |
| Sukude, Themba | The Newcastle Serial Killer | 2004–2005 | 4 | 4 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Attacked couples around parks, raping the female and bludgeoning the male to death with rocks. He later switched to solely targeting men |
| Taki, Thozamile | The Sugarcane Killer | 2007 | 13 | 13 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Robbed and murdered women around KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape, dumping their bodies in sugarcane and tea plantations |
| Thwala, Sipho | The Phoenix Strangler | 1996–1997 | 16 | 16+ | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Raped and murdered women in sugarcane fields near Phoenix |
| Vilakazi, Themba | The Railway Killer | 2005 | 3 | 5 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Murdered black males around Pretoria |
| Wilken, Stewart | The Boetie Boer | 1990–1997 | 10 | 10+ | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Raped and murdered prostitutes, young boys and his own daughter around Port Elizabeth |
| Williams, Tommy | The City Serial Killer | 1987–2008 | 3 | 3 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Strangled three acquaintances in varying circumstances; South Africa's longest active serial offender |
| Xitavhudzi, Elias | The Pangaman | 1953–1959 | 16 | 16 | Executed in 1960 | Murdered and mutilated white women around Atteridgeville |
| Zikode, Christopher Mhlengwa | The Donnybrook Serial Killer | 1994–1995 | 18 | 18 | Sentenced to life imprisonment | Necrophiliac house intruder who murdered people around Donnybrook, then had sex with the female victims' corpses |

## Unidentified serial killers

| Nickname | Years active | Proven victims | Possible victims | Region(s) where active | Notes |
| Cape Town Prostitute Killer | 1992–1996 | 19 | 19 | Western Cape | Strangled prostitutes and domestic workers around Cape Town |
| Fosaville serial killer | 1999–2003 | 13 | 13 | KwaZulu-Natal | Abducted, bound and strangled women around Newlands East |
| Sleepy Hollow Killer | 1990s–2007 | 13 | 16+ | Kwa-Zulu Natal (confirmed) Free State, Eastern Cape (suspected) | Raped and strangled women, mostly sex workers and prostitutes, using their own panties |

## Suspected serial killers

| Name | Years active | Proven Victims | Possible Victims | Region(s) where active | Status | Notes | Ref |
| Afzal Simons, Norman | 1986–1994 | 1 | 22 | Cape Town | Sentenced to 35 years imprisonment in 1995 | Raped and strangled young boys with pieces of their clothing, their hands bound behind their backs, their shoes removed and their faces pushed into the sand. | |