Bodies pile up in Nyanga with four gunned down in latest wave of escalating violence

The community of Browns Farm, Philippi in Nyanga is reeling in shock following the shooting of eight people, four of whom died from their injuries.

According to Police spokesperson Colonel André Traut, Nyanga police responded to a call on Sunday evening at around 6.20 pm in Browns Farm. Upon arrival, they discovered three deceased men aged in their twenties and five individuals aged between 27 and 35 with gunshot wounds.

Four men were killed and four others aged between 27 and 35 were left with multiple gun wounds following an ambush by unknown gunmen at their residence in Mazizini in Browns Farm, Philippi. Nyanga police attended the scene around 18:20 and they found the bodies. Motive, unknown pic.twitter.com/AUfwzJTKZ9

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“Unknown gunmen opened fire at the victims at their residence in Mazizini in Browns Farm, Nyanga, killing three on the scene, and wounding five. The injured victims were admitted to hospital where one succumbed to death.”

Traut said the motive behind the shooting has yet to be determined and no arrests have been made.

The shooting comes barely a week after four people were killed in the area, meaning eight people have been killed in Nyanga in seven days. The third quarter crime statistics, (October to December 2023) show 15 instances of mass killings in the area.

A few kilometres away in Khayelitsha last week, eight people were killed in a string of violent incidents over just a few hours.

This comes after police last month indicated they had increased operations to crack down on violence around Cape Town.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Schoolgirl killed, cop murdered in wild week of Western Cape shootings

Community and family members declined to comment on what might have led to the shooting, but there are reports that some of the victims were part of a syndicate that requested e-hailing services intending to rob the drivers. Other victims were innocent people caught in the crossfire.

A month ago also in Philippi, a 17-year-old boy was killed while robbing an e-hailing driver with his friends. The boys from Philippi made a ride request while standing at Sinqolamthi Street and when the driver arrived, a group of about seven boys surrounded the car and attacked the driver. The driver suffered a stabbing wound, and he managed to pull out a firearm, killing one of the boys. The others managed to escape unharmed.

MEC of Police Oversight and Community Safety, Reagen Allen said he was angered that yet another mass murder occurred in Nyanga. “It cannot continue in this manner,” he said.

“Our data has already shown that most murders occur between Saturday evening and the early hours of Monday morning. These are related to various causes, which among others include interpersonal violence, drug and alcohol abuse, gang violence and extortions. I’m deeply concerned about how SAPS’ intelligence is being operationalised, if at all. I have written to SAPS’ provincial commissioner for urgent feedback into how SAPS is intervening in the area.”

Allen added that the Western Cape Government are constantly reviewing how Law Enforcement Advancement Plan (Leap) officers and the officers will remain in the area to continue assisting SAPS in their crime-fighting efforts.

Any person who can shed light on the circumstances that led to the shooting incident is encouraged to contact Crime Stop on 08600 10111 or to use the mobile application MySAPS anonymously. DM