DURBAN - A GROUP of Wentworth mothers will march to the local police station to demand police attend to shootings and crime in the community.
The women said they are fed up of living in constant fear of the next drive-by shooting.
The area has become synonymous with shootings between rival gangs, often claiming the lives of innocent men, women and children who get caught in the crossfire.
"We are going to march to the local police station and hand over our memorandum. We will not leave until it is signed and our voices are heard," the women said.
Last weekend, 55-year-old Brian Captuiex was shot dead while sitting outside his home in Reiger Road.
Captuiex had just returned from a family funeral. Police said he had been talking to friends when a white Toyota Yaris drove past and an occupant fired shots.
SAPS spokesperson, Colonel Thembeka Mbele, said Captuiex sustained a gunshot wound to the chest. Residents claimed that he was shot in a case of mistaken identity.
A teenager was also killed in a shooting in the area at the weekend.
Last month, a bystander was killed when a man opened fire on people standing outside a block of flats. Rabia Elouise was standing near the gate when the gunman, in a silver Etios, drove towards the property and fired at least 20 rounds. In an emotional Facebook post, her mother said Elouise was shot twice in the back with one of the bullets piercing her heart.
"I am crying for the loss of my daughter who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. The drive-by shootings, we don’t know where they are from. There is no jail that will keep those who brutally killed my daughter and many others in our Wentworth community. God is wiping away our tears," Rachael Defleurs said.
Speaking to the IOL yesterday, one of the women claimed that there was a plot orchestrated to shoot them on Wednesday night.
"We were sitting outside and someone came to tell us they were going to start shooting. We saw carloads of boys being dropped off and we knew something was up. We just went inside our homes," she said.
Another mother said she had to tell her sons to sleep on the floor in their sister's room because she knew "something was going to happen".
She said they were in bed when they heard cars speed by and gunshots ring out.
The mothers said they are simply asking for those involved in the shootings not to kill innocent people.
"We are not fighting or interfering with the dealers, we just want the killings to stop," they said.
As part of their demands in the MOU, the mothers are asking for increased visible policing in hot spots.
They are also asking for known drug dealers and corrupt police officers to be arrested, charged and prosecuted as well as an increase of random stop-and-searches of suspicious individuals on foot and in vehicles.
"We are calling for an internal investigating of corrupt police officers within the Wentworth police station and a safe communication set up where people can report crimes related to drugs, murders and corruption," the group said.
The march will take place from the bottom of Tuin Road at 10am, ending at the Wentworth police station.
The women are appealing to the community to attend in their numbers and adhere to Covid-19 safety protocol.
They are also asking if residents can donate fruit and water to those who will be marching.
IOL