Cape Town - Just four days after three people were shot and killed in Nyanga, gunmen on Sunday opened fire in neighbouring Gugulethu, killing four men.
The victims came under attack just before 6pm from shooters who opened fire at patrons in a shebeen.
A witness at the scene said the suspects told the women and children to get out of the shebeen as they were not going to shoot them.
The shooters fired close to 90 live rounds during the murder.
The four victims died at the scene from the gunshot wounds, with the suspects yet to be arrested.
Police spokesperson Andrè Traut said: “The circumstances that led to the death of four adult males in Gugulethu are being investigated by detectives attached to the provincial serious and violent crimes unit.
“At around 5.45pm SAPS members responded to a multiple shooting incident at a shebeen in Ngxatha Street KTC where the bodies of two males were discovered on the premises.
“Around the corner from this crime scene, a further two bodies were discovered. All four males aged between 29 and 38 succumbed to death due to gunshot wounds. A fifth victim who was also shot was admitted to hospital, where he is being treated.”
Traut said the motive for the attack was yet to be determined.
Police Oversight and Community Safety MEC Reagen Allen said Gugulethu was well on its way to becoming a murder hot spot.
“The third quarter, October to December 2023 crime statistics, shows that 73 people were murdered (in Gugulethu), which is 23 more when compared to the same period of the previous year. From July to September 2023, there were two incidents where five persons were murdered.
“SAPS has to increase its visibility and utilise its intelligence optimally to immediately bring an end to the violence.
“This violence cannot continue unabated,” Allen said.
“Community members should also assist us with information, so that the perpetrators can be arrested and convicted. As the Western Cape government we’re already supporting SAPS with our LEAP officers, who are deployed in the area.”
Last Wednesday, three people died in Nyanga from gunfire believed to have been from the occupants of a Suzuki 7-seater who opened fire at them in Sibini Avenue, Zwelisha, at around 6.20pm.
According to the police, two females, both aged 43, were shot and killed while an 18-year-old male who was caught in the crossfire was also killed.
Any person with information on the incidents can contact Crime Stop at 08600 10111 or by using the mobile application My SAPS anonymously.
mandilakhe.tshwete@inl.co.za