Tommy Williams (serial killer)

In 2004, 13-year-old Thabang Bihi disappeared from his home in Warrenton. After searches were conducted, Bihi's decomposed body, again covered with grass and branches, was found at an abandoned house. His cause of death initially couldn't be ascertained due to the state of the corpse, but it was considered homicidal in nature, as a shoelace was found wrapped around his neck. Curiously enough, Thabang was friends with Williams, who had also coincidentally lived in that same house, and was found in possession of some of Bihi's personal items. However, it was deemed that the evidence was lackluster, and he was let go.

One of the investigating officers for the Watermeyer homicide was Det. Inspector Fernando Luis, who was aware of Williams' connections to the 2004 Bihi murder. At the time, there were rumors that Williams had found the body of another child murdered decades prior, and Luis was determined to locate the case. He discovered that the child in question was 8-year-old Martha Botha, who was a neighbor of Williams. Drawing connections between the three killings - all vulnerable victims, strangled, and known friends of Williams - Luis dug further, contacting Martha's mother and looking up old archived newspapers to back up his suspicions. After finding all the necessary information, Luis presented it to his superiors, and not long after, Williams was put on trial for all three murders. This feat earned the detective praise from both Senior Superintendent Lindela Mashigo, and Professor Gerard Labuschagne, commanding officer of SAPS' investigative psychology unit and one of the country's most respected researchers on serial murder.

Little is known about Williams' early life. He was born and raised in Vergenoeg, a suburb of Kimberley, the second youngest in a family of six children. Prior to his capture, his only known criminal conviction was for theft in 1990, for which he was lashed seven times.

In 1987, the 16-year-old Williams decided to accompany 8-year-old Marthatjie 'Martha' Botha, a neighbor of his, to a shop in Galeshewe. After they finished, Williams proceeded to lure her into an unused sports stadium, where he proceeded to strangle her to death. He then covered the girl's body with grass and branches, and went to the police, claiming that he had 'found' her in that state. He was not considered a suspect at the time, and the case went cold.

Andries Tommy Williams (born 1970), known as The City Serial Killer, is a South African serial killer who, between 1987 and 2008, strangled to death three acquaintances, two of them children. Labeled as the country's longest-active serial offender, Williams was found guilty of all three murders in 2009, and sentenced to two life imprisonment terms plus 10 years for his first murder, which was committed while he was still a minor.