Lover at large after woman’s mystery death

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Johannesburg - She was allegedly raped, then thrown naked from the 10th floor of a building by her boyfriend or his friend.

But both are walking free as no criminal charges have been brought against them, despite the curious circumstances around her death.

The couple lived in a building on Market Street on the east side of the Joburg CBD and the alleged murder is said to have taken place in the early hours a day after Valentine’s Day.

According to a security report that The Star has seen, the couple were seen on CCTV footage entering the building just before 11pm on February 14 with another man. The woman was named only as Cynthia.

The boyfriend, whose name is known to The Star, apparently later confirmed to police that the other man seen on the CCTV footage was his friend.

At 2am, the security company was called by the man, who said Cynthia had jumped out of the flat on the 10th floor and landed on the roof of the parking area below.

“(The security guard) discovered a dead person lying on the floor. However, he was told by the two (men) not to worry or report it as they were going to make a plan in terms of removing the body out of the building without anybody noticing,” read the report.

It goes on to state that the security guard felt that “his life was also in danger”, but asked his colleagues to contact the police.

The police arrived and asked for the girlfriend’s clothes, but were supplied only with an old tracksuit that wasn’t the right size.

When questioned about the clothes she was wearing on the CCTV footage of her earlier that night, a pink top and white jeans, the boyfriend apparently confessed that he had dumped her belongings in a dustbin outside the building.

“It was confirmed (by the police) that the deceased was raped and (there was) a suspicion that she was killed and thrown out of the window from the 10th floor as a towel was found under her head, soaking blood, on that concrete floor,” said the security report.

On Thursday, the police said only an inquest docket had been opened and no criminal charges had been laid against either of the men.

“An inquest case means they don’t suspect foul play at that stage, but they are investigating that,” said police spokesman Warrant Officer Jerbes de Bruyn.

He said they had no further details as the officers who have access to the electronic system were not on duty because of the public holiday.

According to the report, police also found a “big bag of drugs” in the flat, but the bag had disappeared by the time the detectives arrived. When the detectives did arrive, they allegedly found more drugs scattered across the flat.

brendan.roane@inl.co.za

The Star