Catch Me a Killer on U&Drama: Incredible true story behind serial killers thriller and whether Micki Pistorius is related to Oscar
Micki helped put the country's biggest killers behind barsCatch Me a Killer, new to U&Drama this January, tells the remarkable true story of South Africa’s first serial killer profiler.
The 11-part true crime drama follows journalist-turned-forensic psychologist Micki Pistorius. Charlotte Hope, who’s best known for starring as Catherine of Aragon in Starz’s The Spanish Princess, plays her.
The series opens in 1994, the year that legendary anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela became South Africa’s first president.
As the country adjusts to democracy, Micki joins a task force hunting for a notorious serial killer known as the Station Strangler. Plus, the thriller also explores how she helped capture South Africa’s worst serial killer.
Moreover, the series delves into Micki’s tricky personal life as she struggles to balance a love life with dealing with murderers every day.
Here are all the key questions answered about the series including Micki’s key cases and whether she’s related to Paralympian and convicted murderer Oscar Pistorius.
Is Catch Me a Killer a true story? What was the Station Strangler case?
Yes, Catch Me a Killer is based on Micki’s book of the same name about her experiences catching South Africa’s biggest murderers between 1994 and 2000.
Explaining the title, Micki said: “I started giving courses on criminal profiling to detectives. At the end of one course. I said, ‘What are you waiting for? Go catch me, a killer.'”
Micki believes she has a gift she dubs “cryptesthesia”. The paranormal ability allows her to use extra-sensory perception to catch vibes off suspects.
The series opens with a two-part story about the Station Strangler case. Micki works as a university lecturer in Pretoria until her mentor convinces her to join the police as its first forensic profiler.
The police are desperate to catch the Station Strangler, who has murdered over 20 young boys after luring them away from train stations.
Micki moves from Pretoria to Cape Town and struggles with the high-profile case thrust upon her. She is the only woman on the task force and many of the team doubt her skills.
But she manages to build a profile of the Station Strangler which helps lead to his arrest. She spots that the children must have trusted the killer to have gone willingly with him, narrowing the suspects.
Micki grows frustrated when her police colleagues leave her out of the arrest, but she later conducts a face-to-face interview with the murderer.
In 1995, Norman Simons was convicted of the murder of 10-year-old Elroy van Rooyen. The media dubbed him the Station Strangler. However, Simons, a schoolteacher, was never charged with the other killings. So to this day questions remain about the case. Simons was released on parole in 2023.
Who was the ABC Killer? The true story behind South Africa’s worst serial killer
Episode 4 of Catch Me a Killer tells the story of one South Africa’s most notorious murderers and the role Micki played in his capture.
People dubbed the murderer the ABC Killer because he committed most of his murders in the Atteridgeville, Boksburg and Cleveland suburbs. So many people were brutally killed it came to Nelson Mandela’s attention and he made a national television appeal for help.
Micki managed to make a number of clever deductions about the murderer that helped the team eventually capture Moses Sithole.
Sithole was found guilty in 1997 of 38 murders and 40 rapes. He mainly strangled his victims with their own underwear. The trial judge sentenced him to two thousand years in jail and said he would have imposed the death penalty if allowed.
Talking about Sithole, Micki recently commented: “He inflicted severe psychological torture upon his victims by showing them the decomposing bodies of previous victims.”
Moses has also been referred to as the Ted Bundy of South Africa, because his crimes were like those of the notorious American serial killer.
What other cases feature in Catch Me a Killer? Who was the Phoenix Strangler?
In episode 5, Nicki questions how much empathy she can have for a killer when she comes face-to-face with chilling murderer Christopher Zikode. But knows she must do her job. The clock is ticking for her to extract a confession. So, she decides she must fully expose herself to Zikode’s warped mind. However, the case takes a fresh twist when he escapes.
Micki is also tasked in episode 6 with extracting a confession from a suspect targeting prostitutes in Cape Town.
Parts 9 and 10 tell the true story of her involvement in capturing The Phoenix Strangler. Micki again extracts a confession. She understands his life story so well he admits his guilt.
Sipho Thwala was The Phoenix Strangler. He was convicted in 1999 for the murders of 16 women and 10 rapes.
Episodes 10 and 11 form a two-part story about the Saloon Killer, named for the “saloon” gun he used.
The dramatic series finale features Micki confronting the killer who points his gun at her.
Where is Micki Pistorius now?
Micki now lives in Mauritius, an island in the Indian Ocean. She worked for the South African police for six years before leaving in 2000. Micki came to international attention when Catch Me a Killer became a bestseller after being released in 2000.
Micki, 64, also has her own YouTube channel where she dives into crimes. She also continues to act as an expert witness on cases and presents workshops on criminal profiling.
Plus, she acted as a consultant on this series. Charlotte Hope, who plays her in the drama, said: “Micki was amazing, she really supported me all the way through it. I really wanted to do her justice and I’m so grateful I got to play her.”
Is Micki Pistorius related to Oscar Pistorius? Was she at his trial?
Yes, Micki Pistorius is related to Oscar Pistorius, she is his aunt. And yes, Micki did attend court during proceedings against Oscar.
Obviously, because Micki is Oscar’s aunt she didn’t have anything professionally to do with the case. It’s somewhat ironic that South Africa’s most famous criminal profiler wasn’t involved in South Africa’s most famous ever case.
In 2012, the athlete became the first double amputee to run in the Olympics. Just six months later the man known as Blade Runner was arrested after he shot his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp multiple times through a toilet door. He was eventually convicted of her murder in 2015 and was freed on parole in 2024.
The fact that Micki was Oscar’s aunt caused something of a media sensation at the time of his trial. Oscar being related to South Africa’s leading profiler was just another twist in a case that gripped the world.
Micki hasn’t made any comment about her nephew’s case.
Books by Micki Pistorius
As mentioned, Micki’s first book, Catch Me a Killer, became a bestseller after being released in 2000. Indeed, publishers have reprinted it with a new cover to tie in with the TV series.
In Catch Me a Killer Micki told her own story, while she aimed her second book, Strangers on The Street, at investigators. First published in 2002, its goal was to help police officers and psychologists spot behavioural patterns so they could identify serial killers.
Her third book, Fatal Females: Women Who Kill, was first published in 2005. People’s fascination with female killers led Micki to challenge the idea that women lack the inclination to commit crimes. She examined more than 50 documented cases of South African female killers.
Micki hasn’t revealed if she’s currently working on any other books. Given her expertise it’s a surprise she hasn’t turned her hand to crime fiction.
Read more: 15 greatest portrayals of serial killers
