Following the Enyobeni tavern tragedy where 21 young people lost their lives, last weekend saw two tavern shootings take place in Soweto and Pietermaritzburg. The death toll for the consecutive but separate incidents is 19.
The Pietermaritzburg shooting occurred at Samkelisiwe Tavern in Sweetwaters on Saturday evening.
According to Lieutenant Colonel Nqobile Gwala, two men are believed to have entered the tavern where they “randomly opened fire on the patrons resulting in at least 12 people being shot.”
Two people died at the tavern while two more passed away at a later stage. 8 were hospitalised.
Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanlha Mkhwanazi has condemned the incident and expressed that teams including Crime Intelligence, forensic experts and a tactical unit will work around the clock to book those responsible.
Sunday in Soweto followed with more tragedy and 15 lives taken.
The massacre took place at Nomzamo Tavern in Orlando East, Soweto a little after midnight.
A group of men armed with rifles and pistoles reportedly entered the tavern and started shooting randomly at those inside, according to Colonel Dimakatso Sello, of the Gauteng police.
According to Gauteng Police Commissioner Elias Mawela, several cartridges were found at the scene from a 9mm firearm.
Mawela said that the police don’t know what the motive was for the shooting, but it’s believed that the shooters came with an intention to kill randomly, as per News24.
A team of detectives is being led by Deputy Provincial Commissioner: Crime Detection, Major General Mbuso Khumalo. They have been urged to “pull out all the stops” to catch the criminals and bring them to book.
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Picture: Cape {town} Etc Gallery