UPDATE: Preliminary Findings Suggest St Stithians Schoolgirl Was Murdered, Boyfriend Died by Suicide
Mpumalanga police have released preliminary findings in the deaths of two teenagers connected to St Stithians College, whose bodies were found together at a lodge in Sabie on Monday, 3 August 2026.
Cameron Waldeck-Cooks, 17, a Grade 11 pupil at St Stithians Girls’ College, and her boyfriend Ethan Coetzee, 19, a 2025 matriculant of St Stithians Boys’ College, were discovered by a cleaner in the same bedroom at the Waterval Self-Catering Holiday Home.
According to preliminary findings, as reported by TimesLIVE, Cameron may have been strangled, while Ethan may have taken his own life, possibly by way of a drug overdose. Police have stressed the overdose has not yet been confirmed, and further forensic processes are under way as authorities work to establish the full circumstances. An inquest docket remains open, with a postmortem examination expected to help determine the official cause of death.
This is a shift from earlier statements, when police had indicated there was no evidence of foul play. Unverified rumours had also circulated on social media suggesting the deaths were linked to a gas leak from a heater in the room; police have not confirmed that claim, and the preliminary findings now point in a different direction entirely.
St Stithians College has not issued a further statement beyond its earlier tributes to both students, in which it described Cameron as a beloved daughter, sister and friend known for her kindness and resilience, and Ethan as a warm, charismatic member of the school’s 1st XV rugby team and a national champion in equestrian eventing.
The new details are likely to deepen the shock already felt across the school community as the investigation continues.
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