Cape Town - Three people, including a teenager have been arrested for a mass shooting in Bishop Lavis on Thursday night which claimed the lives of seven people.
Western Cape police commissioner Thembisile Patekile confirmed the arrests and said the suspects were picked up in the area and were in possession of a firearm.
The mass shooting in Bishop Lavis was the third in as many weeks and just a day after five people were shot dead in car on the road between Mamre and Atlantis.
On Sunday three people were killed and a 14-year-old was wounded in Delft. In the shooting in Bishop Lavis eight people were attacked while they were sitting in a wendy house in Kogelberg Road.
Spokesperson Novela Potelwa said they have reinforced deployments in the Bishop Lavis area following the shooting
“Police reports from the scene indicate that at approximately 8:40pm an armed suspect entered an informal dwelling in Kogelberg Road and fired several shots at the occupants.
“Seven people were fatally wounded while another was wounded. The injured person was transported to a medical facility for treatment.
“Murder and attempted murder dockets were opened for investigation with Anti-Gang Unit detectives investigating the cases. No arrests have been effected yet. The ages of the deceased persons are between 24 and 55.
“The Bishop Lavis shooting incident happens on the back of another shooting where five people were shot and killed in Atlantis early on Wednesday evening. Both shooting incidents are believed to be gang related.”
Western Cape provincial commissioner Thembisile Patekile has ordered that AGU detectives spare no resources in getting to the perpetrators of the two heinous acts.
In a video which was shot inside the crime scene, two men were killed while on the bed, four other victims were on the floor while a man lay outside the wendy house.
Meanwhile the families of the deceased are struggling to understand the motive for the shooting.
Lee-Anne Hendricks, 24, a mother to a 1-year-old girl had been visiting her neighbour when she was killed.
Her distraught mom Desree Hendricks, 51, explained she was at home when people shouted outside her yard that her daughter had been shot.
“We went to the wendy house which is around the corner and the police had not yet arrived. When we got there, she had died already.
“She was shot in the head. One of the victims, a man, was lying outside the structure.”
The mom said her child was a kind person who loved people.
“I have no words to describe the way I feel about this loss. Everyone is heartbroken,” the emotional woman said.
Meanwhile Gaironesa Williams, 57, said when she received the dreaded call informing her about her brother, Igshaan Madatt, 55, she rushed to Bishop Lavis.
“I was in Valhalla Park and my sister called me. When I got to the scene, the police were there and they told me they didn't want me to go in because the forensics experts were busy.
Subcouncil Chairperson Councillor Angus McKenzie said the murders were gang related.
“The seven individuals were brutally murdered after an unknown armed individual entered a backyard dwelling in Kogelberg Road, and opened fire on the occupants.
“These murders are part of an ongoing, ever increasing gang war currently taking place in Valhalla Park and Bishop Lavis. These two areas have, on a daily basis, been affected by shootings and murder. I want to thank SAPS Management for immediately stepping in by increasing police availability and resources to address the gang problems in the areas.”
mandilakhe.tshwete@inl.co.za
Weekend Argus