Manenberg's turf war escalates: Four shot and two dead in gang violence
Two men were killed in a drive-by shooting, part of the escalating turf war between rival gangs.
Image: Leon Knipe
Manenberg has been rocked by a surge of violence this week, with four individuals shot, two of whom have died.
The violence is believed to be linked to an ongoing turf war between the Hard Livings and Clever Kids gangs, with multiple gunshots reported across various parts of the community.
The war kicked off on Monday, March 30, when a video circulating online showed men running around with guns and shooting at each other in broad daylight.
On Tuesday, things got worse when two men were shot dead and two others injured.
Among Tuesday’s victims was a 73-year-old man, who is believed to be innocent, and was shot in the back while walking up the stairs on the bridge around 11:30am at the corner of Duinefontein and De Downs.
Police spokesperson Captain FC Van Wyk reported: “Manenberg police registered an attempted murder case following a shooting incident on Tuesday, March 31, at about 11.30am at the corner of Duinefontein and De Downs on the bridge stairs in Manenberg, in which a 73-year-old male was shot and wounded.
“He sustained a gunshot wound to the back and was taken to a nearby medical facility with an ambulance.
“Members [of the police] attended to a shooting that occurred at the mentioned address and upon arrival found the victim lying face down on the stairs with a gunshot wound to the back.”
Just moments later, two men were shot dead in a drive-by shooting by four gunmen while standing at a tuckshop in Tousberg Road.
Van Wyk said: “Manenberg police registered two counts of murder following a shooting incident on Tuesday, 31 March, at 12.30pm in Manenberg.
“According to reports, a 34-year-old male was standing at a tuckshop in Tousberg Road when a silver VW Polo drove towards him and stopped.
“Four armed suspects randomly fired several shots at the victim, hitting him multiple times in the upper body. He died on the scene due to injuries sustained.
“While fleeing the scene, they approached a 27-year-old male on a bicycle, at the corner of Tousberg and Sugarloaf Road, and shot at him and as he fell to the ground, they got out of their vehicle, walked up to him and fired several gunshots at him fatally wounding him.
“The suspects then got in the vehicle and fled the scene in an unknown direction. No arrest has been made.”
The violence was not over, as a foreign national, who owns a shop, was also shot and wounded.
A community leader, who wants to protect her identity, said the violence is down to a war between the Clever Kids and Hard Livings.
She explained: “The problem we are facing is the gangs are eating from the public pot and get financial strength from public resources.
“In our view, there is no political will to stop gang violence. Gangs see themselves as a consultative constituency.”
When asked if the deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) will bring some calm, she replied: “Not sure. With our over-population problem those methods are not going to bring calmness.”
Public Relations Officer for the Manenberg Community Police Forum, Abdurahman Govind, said he is hoping for change.
Govind said: “These drive-by shootings, it just gets completely out of control. Also this is something that is mind boggling.
“The guy or shop owner that was shot, it’s either extortion or just to scare the foreign nationals but this is just too much.
“Hopefully when the army is deployed into our area we hope that SAPS is going to go full out and make the arrest and put a stop to these clowns that think they can take over our communities.”