Two in court after 10 die in Cape Town taxi attacks

Two suspects appeared in the Wynberg court yesterday after taxi-related violence broke out in Cape Town, leaving 10 people dead and several more injured over the weekend.

Two men were arrested in Gugulethu on Sunday on suspicion of being involved with the brutal murders and injuries of taxi drivers and commuters. They were found to be in possession of unlicensed firearms. The weapons were seized and the two suspects are currently facing charges of attempted murder and illegal possession of firearms.

According to the South African Police Service (SAPS) Western Cape spokesperson Novela Potelwa, the police department was shocked by the events that occurred and has responded by setting up a detective-led task team to probe the incident.

She said: “Cases of murder and attempted murder are under investigation following [the latest] shooting incident that left a 60-year-old man shot and fatally wounded while a 60-year-old woman was shot and wounded at Bongweni, Khayelitsha on Saturday, this case [marks] the 10th victim that has been killed.”

The victims of the incident, as reported by the SAPS, included a man in his 40s, who was shot and fatally injured on Friday, a 35-year-old man and a commuter shot and wounded at a street corner as well as five men who were shot and fatally wounded, and three taxi drivers shot and severely wounded.

Potelwa said “This morning the SAPS detective teams [were] busy with operations. We have also reinforced deployments at identified transport hubs throughout Cape Town.”

She also said that “emergency meetings with role players in the transport sector, City of Cape Town, traffic services, SAPS and other law enforcement agencies are underway in an effort to determine the source of the violent incidents.”

– jenniffero@citizen.co.za

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