A young Mitchells Plain hafiz student was shot and killed while walking to a tuckshop with a friend.
Fourteen-year-old Ganief Layman is the latest victim amid a spate of shootings in Hyde Park, Tafelsig, and is one of three people who were struck as gangsters opened fire in Vancouver Street on Thursday night.
His heartbroken sister Ghakeema Salaam-Madatt, 26, says they were in a state of disbelief as they stood over his lifeless body after he had been shot twice in the chest.
She says: "My brother was just 14 years old and he had spent the day working at the stalletjie in Woodlands where they sell fruits and vegetables.
“He used to be at Tafelsig High School but he was being bullied and so he went to madrassa to become hafiz and he has already completed reciting the Quran.
“He just came home and walked to the shop when we heard the shots going off."
The grieving sister says they were told the gunmen drove a blue Toyota Etios.
She explains: "We were told that they just stopped and were shooting in the road and his friend was also shot in the leg.
“When we got there he was still alive but he could not respond to us.
“We could not believe what we were seeing because we never thought he would die like this; a boy who never even worried with gangs and just went to work, madrassa, played soccer and spent his time in the mosque."
Police spokesperson, Warrant Officer Joseph Swartbooi, says Mitchells Plain police are investigating a case of murder and two counts of attempted murder.
Swartbooi reports: “The victim was declared deceased on the scene by the medical personnel.
“Two males aged 19 and 20 who also sustained gunshot wounds were transported to a nearby hospital for medical treatment.
“The unknown suspects fled the scene and they are yet to be arrested. The motive for this attack is believed to be gang related.”
Veranique “Benji” Williams, vice chairperson of the Mitchell’s Plain Community Police Forum, says shootings are recorded every day.
Williams adds: "It is very sad to see what our community is going through and especially our innocent children being hurt in this violence.
“We call on the community to keep their children safe inside and not let them go to shop at night.
“Tafelsig is the most red zone in Mitchell's Plain. The community needs to come out in their numbers and join the safety structures and stop keeping quiet and help share information so the police can keep these suspects behind bars. It is raining bullets in Tafelsig."
monique.duval@inl.co.za