Bulelani Mabhayi

From May 2007 to August 11, 2012, Mabhayi killed 10 women and 9 children^[1] in the village of Tholeni in the Eastern Cape.^[2] A woman from another town was also murdered.^[3] He broke into houses at night, where there were no men. He would then rape some of his victims and then kill them with an axe or panga.

His youngest victim was 14 months old and his eldest was 79 years old.^[4]

On May 17, 2010, Mabhayi and other local men over 16 years were tested and their fingerprints were taken. Mabhayi's fingerprints could not be taken because he had no identification with him. He was eventually caught when he left a shoe at a crime scene. The saliva sample taken in 2010 was crucial for identification.^[5]

Mabhayi was found guilty of 20 counts of murder, 6 of rape and 10 of burglary.^[6] He was sentenced on September 3, 2013, from 25 years to life imprisonment.

• List of serial killers in South Africa
• List of serial killers by number of victims