The KZN SAPS says resources have been mobilised following the murders of seven people at an establishment in Marianhill on Saturday night.
DURBAN — At least six people were gunned down in KwaZulu-Natal on Saturday night in yet another mass shooting in the country.
It is alleged that the victims were seated at an establishment in the Marianhill area in Durban when they were attacked.
Provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Jay Naicker said that at around 7.30pm a group of unknown men opened fire at people who were at a tuckshop in Marianhill.
Seven people, aged between 30 and 65, died at the scene.
“Initial investigations revealed that three of the deceased were the tuckshop owner as well as his two sons and one other man who was waiting at the tuckshop to see a traditional healer might have been the actual target of the hit,” said Naicker.
He added that KZN SAPS commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi has mobilised all available police resources to hunt down the assailants.
Mkhwanazi said this incident once again demonstrates the SAPS’s concern that firearms are contributing to the high levels of crime in the country and are advocating for stricter regulations regarding the management of legal firearms as many of them end up being used by criminals.
“We will do everything within our control to bring these killers to book,” he said.
This shooting comes just weeks after four men entered a tavern in Pietermaritzburg and gunned down four people, wounding eight others.
Bonginkosi Genius Zaca, 27, Thembelani Sanele Malevu, 23, Melizwe Advocate Mjwara, 22, and Sabelo Felix Mabaso, 36, have since been arrested and have abandoned their bail application.
They face charges of murder as well as attempted murder, possession of a prohibited firearm and possession of ammunition. The accused will appear in court again in September. They remain in custody until then.
Earlier this month, the police also reported that 15 people were killed in a mass shooting at Mdlalose’s tavern in Soweto.
“It is reported that on July 10, a group of men armed with rifles and 9mm pistols entered the tavern and started shooting randomly at the patrons who were sitting inside. Twenty-three people were shot, 12 of whom where declared dead on the scene, while 11 were rushed to a nearby hospital. Two more were later declared dead at the hospital,” said police spokesperson Colonel Dimakatso Sello.
A 15th death was later reported.
On the same weekend, unknown gunmen opened fire on patrons at a tavern in Katlehong, Ekurhuleni. Two people succumbed to their wounds on the scene while four others were wounded and rushed to the hospital.
An officer from the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department was arrested in connection with the shooting.
