Bonteheuwel drive-by shooting leaves four children wounded
Ward councillor Angus McKenzie expresses frustration over the impact of gang violence on innocent children in Bonteheuwel, following a drive-by shooting that left four young victims injured.
Image: File
Four children were shot and wounded on Tuesday evening in Bonteheuwel when unknown gunmen emerged from a vehicle and opened fire on a group of children standing by the shop in Amandel Street.
The children (aged 10, 11, 12 and 16 and who live on one street) were transported to a medical facility for treatment, where they have been stabilised.
The mother of the youngest victim said her son underwent surgery on Wednesday morning after being shot in the buttocks and knee.
The mom explained: “My son was shot on his bum cheek, and the bullet went right through. He was also shot in the knee, where the bullet got stuck. He had to undergo surgery on Wednesday.
“It was around 7pm, and he went to the shop. They say a car came and they just started shooting at the children and left.
“Someone came running into our house and said my brother-in-law’s son was shot, we didn’t know about the others who got shot until we got to the scene and I saw my son also lying there.
“I am spending my time at the hospital caring for my son, but he is okay and doing well. I think the worst is over. He is expected to make a full recovery.”
Ward councillor Angus McKenzie said the children paid the price in a gang conflict terrorising the area.
“Earlier this week, a known gangster was shot and killed. (Tuesday) night, the retaliation came. A vehicle, which we have a full description of, drove through the A-Block of Bonteheuwel and opened fire near a known gangster’s home.
But once again, it wasn’t gangsters who paid the price. Three innocent children. Under the age of 15. Shot. Injured,” McKenzie said.
Later that evening, a 30-year-old man was shot and wounded in the back in a drive-by shooting on Citrus Street and was transported to a hospital.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Novela Potelwa confirms that the motive for the shooting incidents is under investigation.
Potelwa confirmed: “Anti-Gang Unit detectives are investigating two shooting incidents after five people were shot and wounded in Bonteheuwel on Tuesday evening.
“In one incident that occurred on Amandel Street, a group was standing outside a shop when a vehicle pulled up, and two suspects alighted. The suspects started firing shots at the group, and a teenager (16) with children aged 12, 11 and 10 was injured.”