Two teenagers have been killed, as gang-related shootings escalate in Elsies River.

The 16- and 19-year-olds were gunned down on the corner of Bourne Road and Kriebos Link in Leonsdale on Wednesday night.

A Western Cape SAPS spokesperson, Captain F.C. Van Wyk, confirmed that by the time officers arrived on the scene, medical personnel had advised that they were declared dead due to the wounds sustained. 

A 12-year-old girl and a 63-year-old woman were also wounded in the shooting. 

“The community also alerted the members of the 12-year-old girl who sustained gunshot wounds to the hip and thigh, and the 63-year-old woman who sustained a gunshot wound to the stomach. They found the girl at a premises in Glochester Place, 15th Avenue, Leonsdale and the 63-year-old woman at a nearby hospital,” said Van Wyk.

The Western Cape SAPS confirmed that they are investigating whether the incident could be linked to gang violence.  

“The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation, and arrests are yet to be made,” said Van Wyk.

This incident follows another fatal shooting in the area on Tuesday, in which a man believed to be a gang boss from Bishop Lavis was killed.

The 42-year-old man was gunned down while in a vehicle, which police say was a lime/green Toyota Auris, on the corners of 35th Street and Old Stellenbosch Road that afternoon. Another man was injured in the incident. 

“Elsies River detectives are investigating a murder and an attempted murder. The motive for this shooting incident is believed to be gang-related,” said Van Wyk in a statement on Tuesday.

These incidents come weeks ahead of the deployment of the South African National Defence Force, which is expected in the first week of April.

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