Murder victims Oscar O’Hara and Barney van Heerden There are fears a serial killer may be stalking and murdering gay men in Johannesburg, where four gay men have been killed in the same brutal way over the past ten months. All four men were bound before being strangled in private homes in South Africa's most populous city, while one victim also had acid poured over his body. In each case, there was no sign of a break-in and little was stolen. The Star reports that in the most recent case, 39-year-old Barney Van Heerden was found bound and strangled in his Orange Grove home. Security guards found his car gate open and his front door unlocked. Police believe he may have known his killer as half-full glasses of wine were found on the kitchen table. Van Heerden's death follows those of Jim Cathels who was found bound and strangled at his home in Berea in December, and 33-year-old Oscar O’Hara who was found bound and strangled in Kensignton while house-witting for a friend four months ago. On 11 September 36-year-old Siphiwe Selby Nhlapo was found, also bound and strangled, at his home in Kliptown, Soweto. His body had acid poured over it. Police are working separately on the four cases and have not publicly discussed a possible link, but there are fears in the gay community that the cases may be connected. The Commission for Gender Equality says law enforcement must "make an example" of the perpetrators by taking the killings seriously. "These kinds of crime need to be nipped in the bud and dealt with seriously. We cannot continue to live in a country where people are being killed just because they are gay," says spokesman, Javu Baloyi.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Tuesday, 4th October 2011 - 3:34pm