Mchunu demands 'targeted action' on WC mass killings

Thirteen people, including three suspects, were killed during the past week alone.

On Saturday, seven men were ambushed and gunned down in a residence in Kanana, Gugulethu, while three more bodies were discovered on Tuesday in different but nearby locations in Samora Machel. Earlier in the week, three suspected hijackers were killed in a shootout during an apparent hijacking in Nyanga.

Western Cape police have since launched a manhunt for the Gugulethu mass shooting suspects.

Mchunu referred to the Cape Flats as "the killing fields" of the province.

 “What the police ministry and police top management must refuse to do is to treat this as a normal trend and keep the normal methods of policing in place. The situation requires full implementation of what the ministry and management have discussed and concluded over a considerable period of time now,” said Mchunu. 

He said the suspects are not known to police and must be tracked as part of Operation Shanela 2, which was launched last Friday.

The operation targets murder, illegal firearms, drug trafficking, and gender-based violence and femicide, using a coordinated, intelligence-driven approach involving SAPS units, task teams, and intergovernmental collaboration.

“This turn of events is ugly and poses fundamental questions on the safety of people in that area. One thing that is crystal clear is that murderers are out there to kill. It is as if we have to choose between the people and the murderers — we actually do not have a choice,” the minister said.

 “We urge the national commissioner and his team to activate and unleash all police resources to confront criminality and criminals.”

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