The dark legacy of Sithole

AS SOUTH Africa was celebrating the dawn of democracy in the mid 1990s, a serial killer was on the loose, determined to exact revenge on as many women as he could.

- KARISHMA DIPA

Taking advantage of their newfound freedom of movement, Moses Sithole would prey on defenceless ladies who were in search of job opportunities in Gauteng at the time.

Dubbed the ABC Killer - a name derived from his modus operandi of targeting young, black women across vulnerable areas like Atteridgeville, Boksburg and Cleveland, he would appear charming and friendly, meeting them in public places with the promise of an employment prospect.

As they walked together, Sithole would insist that he knows a short cut, leading the woman into isolated velds where he would violently rape, rob and then murder them.

In about just 18 months, he is believed to have killed a whopping 72 ladies, making Sithole one of the country’s most prolific serial killers. He was eventually convicted of 38 murders, 40 rapes and six robberies, all of which he committed in broad daylight between 1994 and 1995, and all while sober and not under any substances.

Now, a new documentary series, aptly titled The ABC Killer is set to chronicle Sithole’s reign of terror, from his first initial murder, all the way up until him being sentenced to an astonishing 2410 years in prison.

The three-part series is the work of director Jasyn Howers, who brought viewers the award-winning Boetie Boer.

One of the most powerful aspects of the Showmax Original, which is set to premiere on July 22, is the first-hand accounts from Tamsen de Beer, a rookie journalist at The Star newspaper at the time, who received calls from Sithole regarding his murder spree.