SOUTH African police said today they had arrested three suspects in connection with one of a series of killings of women on the outskirts of Johannesburg.

The nine killings in the Ekurhuleni municipality over the last two months have triggered anger in South Africa, which has high rates of violence against women.

Police have been investigating whether the crimes are connected, raising fears that a serial killer or killers might be responsible.

The suspects, two women and a man, were expected to appear in court late today after being arrested in relation to the killing of a woman whose body was found last week in Ekurhuleni.

Authorities have said it is not certain that all the killings are connected, though they have identified similarities in some of them and have issued an alert for women in Ekurhuleni to take precautions.

Police Minister Firoz Cachalia said on Sunday that, so far, there was no conclusive evidence pointing to a serial killer, “but nothing has yet been excluded while investigations continue.”

The bodies of six of the victims were found in the space of 10 days this month. Four of the nine victims were discovered within four miles of each other.