5-year-old shot in suspected gang incident in Manenberg

A five-year-old boy is in hospital after being shot in the head during a suspected gang-related shooting in Manenberg. The incident, which also left two women wounded, occurred on Monday evening on Irvine Street.

According to the SAPS, the boy was walking with his father to a nearby tuckshop when stray bullets struck him. Two women, aged 31 and 54, were seated outside a residence and were also caught in the crossfire, sustaining injuries to the thigh and lower back.

“Manenberg police registered three counts of attempted murder… The suspects fled on foot. No arrests has been made,” said Western Cape police spokesperson, Frederick van Wyk.

The shooting has reignited calls for action against gang violence in Manenberg, an area plagued by high crime levels. Manenberg Community Policing Forum (CPF) chair, Vernon Visagie, strongly condemned the incident and further criticised the silence of community members who witness such crimes.

“We have warned the community that if they don’t speak out, these are gonna be the consequences that they need to suffer for the rest of their lives.”

Visagie says the CPF will closely monitor this case, and work with SAPS to ensure the perpetrators are found and brought to justice.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, Deputy Police Ministers Cassel Mathale and Polly Boshielo visited other Cape Town communities, namely Samora Machel and Atlantis, as part of a crime prevention initiative.

The SAPS says this imbizo is part of its ongoing efforts to find lasting solutions to address gun and gang violence.

This visit to Atlantis, in particular, follows over two months after a mass shooting claimed the lives of five people there. No arrests have been made in that case as yet, highlighting the ongoing struggle against violent crime in the region.