THE taxi boss that was killed during the ruthless shooting on Old North Coat Road yesterday has been identified as Falakhe Maphumulo, who was also the deputy chairperson of the Inanda Taxi Association.
Maphumulo (40) and his wife, Mpume Nzuza, were ambushed near Avoca by six brazen gunmen in peak-hour morning traffic. The couple was travelling east when the men, armed with handguns, approached their vehicle.
According to Lt Elvis Naidoo, the Greenwood Park SAPS spokesperson, some of the gunmen first shot at the wife from the passenger door, pulled her from the vehicle, threw her on the floor and shot her again in the chest. They then proceeded to open fire on Maphumulo from all angles of the vehicle.
Within seconds chaos erupted among commuters as some crashed into fellow motorists and others abandoned their vehicles in an attempt to escape the shooting. “After he was shot, Maphumulo lost control of his vehicle and smashed into the car in front of him. The whole incident took place within two or three minutes,” he said.
Witnesses reported that the suspects ran onto oncoming traffic and fled into the bushes on the opposite side of the road. Police were met with a gruesome, bloody scene and found Maphumulo slumped over the passenger seat. “We found 17 casings at the scene. Maphumulo has sustained multiple gunshot wounds,” said Naidoo. Nzuza was transported to King Edwards Hospital and is still in a critical condition.
KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Department of Transport, Community Safety and Liaison, Willies Mchunu, was shocked by the incident. “At this stage we cannot conclude to say this shooting is related to the ongoing taxi related tensions in the taxi industry. We will investigate the root causes of this death. We appeal to members of the public who might have information regarding this senseless killing to work with the police in order to bring killers to book,” he said.
A case of murder and attempted murder has been opened at the station. The Greenwood Park SAPS, the Durban Crime Intelligence Unit as well as a team of officials from the public transport section will work with the taxi associations in the investigation.
