Johannesburg - A bloodbath of a weekend after 13 people were shot and killed in Gauteng, Mpumalanga, and Eastern Cape.
About six people died on the scene in a tavern in Daveyton, Gauteng; two people died in a tavern in Kwanyamazane, Mpumalanga; 17 others were rushed to the hospital to be treated for gun wounds; and five people died on the scene at a house in Gelvandale, Nelson Mandela Bay, last night.
Eastern Cape police are investigating a case of murder after five people were shot dead in a mass shooting at a house in Gelvandale in Nelson Mandela Bay last night.
The three men and two women who were fatally wounded resided in the backyard of a house on Koedoe Street.
A total of six men were shot and killed at a tavern shooting in Rolong Street, Daveyton, Ekurhuleni, on Saturday night, while one was injured and rushed to a nearby healthcare facility.
It is alleged that the victims were sitting outside a tavern when a group of unknown men came from nowhere and started shooting at them. Six were declared dead on the scene, while one was taken to the hospital.
"Six were declared dead on the scene, while one was taken to the hospital. The circumstances that led to the shooting are unknown, and no suspects have been arrested as yet," said Gauteng Provincial SAPS spokesperson Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi.
The Provincial Commissioner of Police in Gauteng, Lieutenant General Elias Mawela, activated a 72-hour action plan following a random shooting.
The police ask anyone with information to contact them.
Police at Kanyamazane are in pursuit of two suspects who were involved in a shooting spree at a tarven in Kanyamazane outside Nelspruit in the early hours of Sunday.
One male person who is not yet identified was fatally shot, while about 15 other patrons sustained some injuries after being shot and were rushed to the hospital for medical treatment.
Police today confirmed that another man died due to a gunshot wound.
Mpumalanga Provincial SAPS spokesperson Colonel Donald Mdhluli said there could be more victims as others were rushed for medical treatment soon after the incident.
"According to information, two armed men wearing balaclavas stormed into the tavern just after midnight, then opened fire indiscriminately. After the shooting, the suspects are said to have fled the scene," said Mdhluli.
Chad Thomas, IRS Forensic Investigations, said it appears that there is an increase in shooting incidents.
"This can be attributed to a multitude of factors: easy access to firearms that are obtained from old undeclared caches from the days of the liberation struggle; smuggling of weapons and explosives across our porous borders; and theft of weapons from the military, SAPS, security personnel, and civilians. However, despite the proliferation of arms, ammunition, and explosives being relatively easy, potentially the biggest problem as to why we see an increase in shooting incidents is that criminals feel that there will not be any consequences for their actions due to perceived ineptitude to arrest, investigate, and prosecute the sheer number of crimes being committed due to capacity issues and other restraints on the criminal justice system," Thimas said.
Police urged members of the public to come forward with information that may assist in apprehending the perpetrators and use our Crime Stop number, 08600 10111, or send information via MYSAPSAPP.
The Star