Recently convicted Modimolle serial killer David Randitsheni, 45, has committed suicide, said Limpopo police on Monday.
Captain Mashudu Malelo said Randitsheni was found hanging by a sheet from a window frame in the Thohoyandou prison on Sunday.
An inquest docket was opened.
Randitsheni was serving 16 life sentences and 220 years after he was sentenced in the Modimolle Circuit Court three weeks ago.
Randitsheni was convicted on 10 counts of murder, 17 counts of rape, one count of indecent assault and 18 counts of kidnapping.
He had raped and killed a number of children and one adult in the Modimolle area between 2004 and 2008.
He was arrested on May 16, 2008 after an intensive police investigation during which over 550 DNA samples were tested before a police forensic expert identified the suspect. - Sapa