Suspected vigilante gang terrorises KZN’s Amouti, leaving six dead

A suspected vigilante gang of approximately 20 men has wreaked havoc in Amouti, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), killing six people over the weekend.

While security company Reaction Unit South Africa (Rusa) attributed the murders to a “vigilante” group, police claim there is no evidence of such a group.

“We are not aware of any vigilante group,” Colonel Robert Netshiunda told The Citizen on Tuesday.

Netshiunda said the murders were being investigated and it wasn’t advisable to make any speculations about their interrelatedness.

A weekend of bloodshed: The murders

The violence began on Friday, 30 August, when a 43-year-old man was shot and killed while assisting with funeral preparations at his neighbour’s home.

According to Rusa, the gang was armed with pangas and a firearm. They allegedly demanded that the victim hand over his firearm.

“He was then shot in the neck & abdomen when he informed them that he did not own one. The mob thereafter fled. Two spent 9mm cartridges were recovered,” said the security company.

After being shot, the deceased was reportedly covered in a blanket and carried to the road.

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Man shot in front of his family

On Saturday, Rusa responded to another murder scene where a 42-year-old man was forced out of his residence and publicly executed.

“According to witnesses, the gang of approximately 20 men armed with firearms & pangas arrived in the area and asked for the deceased by name”.

They allegedly carried on searching for him in the region until he was found at his relative’s house having breakfast.

“They forced him out of the residence and shot him six times. A stray bullet struck the window of a house,” said Rusa.

Information about another victim in the same area was shared while Rusa responded to this scene.

Rusa said the police were at the scene of the crime.

“The suspects are known and are believed to be residents in the area. According to the public, the vigilante gang murdered five men in Amouti – KZN, in the last 24 hours,” the reaction unit added.

The sixth suspect, a 52-year-old was shot and killed by the same group while leaving his place of residence.

“He had been shot five times in the head, chest and leg. He was declared deceased by Rusa paramedics.

“[The] family of the deceased informed reaction officers that the man was unemployed and collected a disability grant due to a disability that affected his ability to walk properly,” the unit reported.

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Community suspects gang is targeting local criminals

Rusa spokesperson Prem Balram told The Citizen that the unit attended to multiple shootings in the area, including four of the six murders.

“The other two, we were informed that there was a shooting and four were confirmed dead by our paramedics and the other two were not,” said Balram.

The security company believes the gang is targeting criminal elements within the community.

“We believe from the interviews that we have had with residents and witnesses, we believe it’s a group that’s basically attacking criminal elements within the community. This has not been confirmed,” Balram added.

Community reaction to ‘vigilante’ gang

Balram said the community’s stance on the murders was divided, with some celebrating the deaths of alleged criminals and others believing that innocent people were killed.

“There’s two types of emotions from the public. Some are celebrating that criminals have been killed. Others believe they are not criminals. And there were innocent people that were killed. So we have not confirmed either one,” he said.

He said there were certain witnesses who gave up information about the murders to the authorities.

“Obviously they will remain anonymous. The detectives in this matter or the South African police will take the lead, obviously. And if there’s sufficient evidence to arrest, they will arrest.”