Residents of Hanover Park are fearing a violent retaliation after yet another gang shooting left six people shot, two of them fatally on Saturday night.
Police spokesperson, Captain FC Van Wyk, confirmed the shootings in Johndown Walk but says no arrests have been made yet.
He reports: “Philippi police are investigating a case of double murder and five attempted murders following a shooting incident on Saturday at 10.45pm in Johndown Walk, Hanover Park, where two males aged 19 and 41 were shot and fatally wounded, and [four] others aged between 18 and 44 shot and injured.”
“The injured victims were taken to a nearby medical facility for treatment. The suspects fled the scene and they are yet to be arrested.”
Spokesperson for the Hanover Park Community Police Forum, Kashiefa Mohammed, says the latest shootings have the community living in fear.
She says: “This gang war is not getting any better. In a few days our children are going back to school and the shootings are still ongoing.
“Hanover Park is now living in fear due to these people that got shot on Saturday because people don’t know where and when the next shooting is going to happen. They don’t know where to walk and children can’t play outside, so what is the police really doing regarding this gang war?”
Kashiefa says that five men were shot and one innocent 20-year-old woman was struck in the leg. She claims that the men were all sitting in one yard when unknown gunmen allegedly opened fire on the group and fled the scene.
She adds: “The area is very tense. There is going to be a gang retaliation because there have been shootings in the same area for a couple of weeks now and people are dying constantly, even women and innocent people are being shot.
“After the shooting, the community were attacking the police because all fingers are pointed at the police as the crime is rising, people are dying.“What is the police actually doing? They need to bring in more forces.
“Not all of us are gangsters in Hanover Park, here are some good people as well.”
Van Wyk is appealing to anyone with information who witnessed this incident to kindly call Crime Stop on 08600 10111.
marsha.dean@inl.co.za