Port Elizabeth - A 22-year-old alleged gangster was arrested for the murder of 2-year-old Hakeem Baartman, Eastern Cape police said on Tuesday.
In November last year, Baartman was in Helenvale in an area called “Die Gat” when gang violence erupted. Baartman was hit in the head by a stray bullet and died at the scene.
Police spokesperson, Colonel Priscilla Naidu said the Provincial Gang Investigation Unit arrested a 22-year-old suspect at a tavern in Voisen Road in Gelvandale on Monday.
It was alleged that on November 18 last year, the two-year-old boy was fatally injured while a 17-year-old teenager sustained a gunshot wound in the neck.
Naidu said the 17-year-old was sitting on the steps of a house in Hartbees Street in Helenvale when the suspect approached from an open field and started shooting at him.
Police said the victim ran into the street and the suspect continued firing at him.
During the shooting, the toddler was struck by a bullet in the head and passed away.
“The shooting at the teenager is gang related and police are investigating a case of murder and attempted murder.”
The suspected is expected to make a first appearance in the Port Elizabeth Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.