Bio

Lazarus Tshidiso Mazingane was born in 1976 and grew up in Soweto, South Africa. He was mainly raised by his grandmother and lacked stable parental guidance. His lawyers later used that background as part of his defense.

As an adult, Mazingane worked as a taxi driver in the Johannesburg area. His job allowed him to move through places such as Nasrec and Southgate, where he regularly came into contact with commuters and travelers. In the mid-1990s, police began linking him to a series of rapes, robberies, and murders that made him one of South Africa’s most notorious serial killers.

Murder Story

Between 1995 and 1998, Lazarus Tshidiso Mazingane committed a series of attacks in and around Johannesburg, mainly in the Nasrec and Southgate areas. Many of his victims were women traveling alone or looking for transport. Prosecutors said he robbed, raped, and murdered them, usually by strangling them with their own clothing. Some victims survived and later described being tied up and left for dead.

His confirmed victims included Margaret Mollo Dineo, Lindileni Paulina Mahlangu, Kedibone Catherine Maepe, Prudence Miller, Gladys Mabaso, Queen Mnguni, Glen-Rose Vilakazi, Minah Msimanga, Prudence Mohomane, Maria Tshabalala, Utlwang Dorah Koma, Palesa Molapisi, and Susan Mlaba. Male victims included Gert Aspeling and Joaquim Manuel Ferreira, who were killed during robbery attacks.

Police later linked the crimes through DNA and forensic evidence. Investigator Piet Byleveld helped solve the case. Mazingane was arrested in 1998, tried in the Johannesburg High Court, and convicted in November 2002 on 74 charges, including 16 murders and 22 rapes. On December 2, 2002, he was sentenced to 17 life sentences plus more than 700 years in prison.