Elifasi Msomi

Elifasi Msomi a.k.a. The Axe Killer (1910 – 10 February 1956) was a South African serial killer who was convicted in 1955 of 15 murders and sentenced to death by hanging. His victims all came from the Umkomaas and Umzimkulu valleys of Natal.

Background A Zulu man, Msomi was an unsuccessful young sangoma (shaman). Seeking professional assistance, he consulted with another sangoma. Msomi claims that during this exchange he was co-opted by an evil spirit, a tokoloshe. In August 1953, under the instruction of the tokoloshe, Msomi began an 18-month killing spree in the southern KwaZulu-Natal valleys of South Africa. Contemporary accounts and later court testimony described him as intelligent and articulate.

Crimes Victim selection Msomi’s victims were predominantly poor, rural individuals living in the southern valleys of KwaZulu-Natal. Many were socially isolated and had limited access to formal policing. Several victims reportedly approached Msomi voluntarily, seeking healing, spiritual assistance, or guidance, due to his presentation as a sangoma.

Method Msomi typically lured victims to remote or isolated locations, including rural paths and sparsely populated areas. Attacks were carried out without warning. Court records and contemporary reporting indicate that the murders were committed primarily using an axe or other blunt instruments. The consistency of the method contributed to the eventual linking of the crimes by investigators. Msomi's first known murder involved the initially raped and murdered a young woman in the presence of his mistress, keeping her blood in a bottle. Unimpressed with his 'new' powers, his mistress alerted the police who arrested Msomi. He escaped shortly afterwards, giving credit for his escape to the all-powerful tokoloshe. Msomi was sentenced to death by hanging at Pretoria Central Prison.

Superstition However, Msomi's reference to the tokoloshe and his numerous escapes had caused a high level of consternation amongst some of the Zulu community. Upon request, the judge permitted a deputation of nine Zulu chiefs and elders to attend the hanging in order to confirm that the tokoloshe did in fact not save Msomi from his death. Even so, one chief felt that Msomi might return after death as a tokoloshe himself.