Is David Rannditsheni (45) Limpopo’s monster? This is the question after he was arrested at his home at Lwamondo Village outside Thohoyandou after intensive police investigations.

Limpopo’s Police Commissioner, Calvin Sengani, praised the police task team that cracked the case involving the disappearance of many children in the Modimolle area between 2004 and 2008. This was after Rannditsheni, believed to be Limpopo’s most sought-after serial killer, was allegedly linked positively to the rapes and killings of the children and police believe they have the right man. He was allegedly linked to the crimes through DNA tests.

Rannditsheni is suspected to have been working as a builder in the Modimolle area when he allegedly committed his heinous crimes.

The suspect’s trail of crime dates back to 2004 when children went missing without any clue and his alleged killings left the local community gripped with fear, pondering who would be next. It is alleged that he kept on targeting his unsuspecting victims until his arrest last week.

Trail of rapes and murders

According to the police, Rannditsheni is linked to several rapes and murders:

* Matshidiso Greycia Makhubela (3) went missing on September 12, 2004, while playing next to her home. She was discovered raped and murdered the following day.

* Rosina Malete (8) and her brother, Petrus Malete Shiburi (9), went missing on March 28, 2006. Their decomposed bodies were discovered at a nearby mountain on April 5, 2006.

* Kedibone Princess Shiburi (9) went missing on July 14, 2006 and her body was found in the Modimolle industrial area on July 25, 2006.

* Johanna Rebecca Baloyi (8) went missing on April 27, 2007. Her body was found the following day; she had been raped before she was strangled.

* Refilwe Ringane (8) went missing on June 12, 2007. Her body was discovered on August 7, 2007.

* The 46-year-old Kwinana Salome Ramaesela’s body was discovered naked in the bushes next to a railway line on October 8, 2006. She had also been raped before she was killed.

* Mokgadi Maria Mafora (5) went missing on April 5, 2008, and her body was discovered buried in a shallow grave just 500m from her home two days later. She had also been raped before she was killed.

* Three children are still missing: Nono Johanna Lefawane (8) went missing on January 10, 2005, Joshua Moyati Chauke (10) went missing on December 28, 2005, and Johanna Ramokoni Motshabi (4) went missing on January 11, 2006.

Wrong suspect arrested

A suspect was arrested last year but was later released for lack of evidence to link him to the crimes. At the time of his arrest at Vuwani, police hailed the arrest as a major breakthrough and were celebrating even before he was found guilty. The celebrations were short-lived as investigations later indicated that he was in no way linked to the crimes.

Asked whether there will be no recurrence of the previous arrests, Sengani said the suspect had been arrested as a result of DNA tests and he was confident they had the right man. Sengani praised the established police task team that had investigated the cases until this breakthrough.

Reward offered

In an attempt to catch the suspect, police posted an amount of R250 000 as a reward to anybody who could come up with information about the killer, but no information was forthcoming as the killer kept eluding them.

"Our last hope was forensic investigations and we have apprehended the right person, "said Sengani.

Rannditsheni appeared in the Modimolle Magistrate’s Court for the first time last week and was charged with numerous offenses, including rapes, murders and indecent assaults. The case was postponed to July 11 for further investigation.