Cape Town – Community Safety MEC, Albert Fritz, has called on residents in Mfuleni to come forward. He has encouraged them to report those responsible for recent shootings in the area.
The MEC has condemned the spate of shooting incidents in Mfuleni on Sunday, 28 March, and Monday, 29 March, resulting in the death of 10.
Fritz called on any members of the community with information to immediately come forward and to report such to SAPS.
On Sunday afternoon three men were killed, with a fourth victim injured and taken to hospital, after a fatal shooting by four suspects in Ligwa Street.
On Sunday evening, a 29-year-old was killed in a tavern by an unknown assailant, and in a separate incident two men were killed in Bosasa on Sunday evening – one victim was found inside and the other next to the vehicle.
There was also the suspected revenge shooting which killed four people in the Covid-19 informal settlement and injured three.
Fritz said: “I call on any members of the community with information to immediately come forward and to report such to SAPS. We cannot allow our communities to be tormented and traumatised by dangerous criminals.
“These acts are akin to terrorism and we must not protect those who hold our communities at ransom.”
The SAPS provincial management in the Western Cape have ordered that additional police be deployed to the area. The forces are currently on patrol and executing operations at identified hot spots within Mfuleni.
The MEC said that as part of the SAPS 72-hour activation plan, provincial organised crime detectives are pursuing leads.
“The Western Cape safety plan aims to halve the murder rate over the next 10 years through a combination of law enforcement and violence interventions.
“To this end R350 million has been earmarked towards placing additional boots on the ground in communities most affected by crime,” Fritz said.
“In February 2020, we deployed approximately 500 law enforcement to assist in crime-fighting interventions. In October 2020, we then redeployed these officers to communities including Delft, Nyanga, Khayelitsha, Bishop Lavis and Philippi (including Hanover Park).
“This month, we deployed a new tranche to Mitchells Plain. By the end of the year, we will deploy our next cohort of law enforcement officers to communities including Mfuleni,” Fritz said.
Anyone who has information that could assist SAPS in their investigations is urged to come forward and to report such either to their local SAPS station, call Crime Stop on 08600 10111 or use the “Tip Off” function on the MySAPS cellphone application.
Cape Argus