Cape Town - Western Cape MEC for Transport and Public Works Bonginkosi Madikizela has condemned taxi violence and demanded that the hitmen be identified.
This comes after three people were shot and killed and a fourth person injured in Bellville on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, SAPS spokesperson André Traut confirmed a triple murder was being investigated.
“Provincial detectives are probing the circumstances which led to the death of three people in what we believe was a taxi-related incident yesterday afternoon in Voortrekker and Charl Malan roads in Bellville. One bystander was also wounded and is recovering in hospital. The identities of the victims are not disclosed at this stage,” Traut said.
He said a 32-year-old man was arrested and was being questioned. Two stolen firearms were recovered and three licensed firearms were confiscated for further investigation, Traut added.
ER24 spokesperson Russel Meiring on Tuesday had mentioned that two people were killed and two others critically injured in a shooting incident off Voortrekker Road in Belville, Western Cape.
“ER24 paramedics, along with other services, arrived on the scene to find the local authorities already in attendance. Four people were found lying on the pavement.
“Medics assessed the patients and found that two had already succumbed to their numerous gunshot wounds. Nothing could be done for them, and they were declared dead,” Meiring said.
The two who were in critical condition were found on the scene and treated before they were transported to a nearby hospital, where another victim died.
Madikizela said an intergovernmental group of officials from his department, the South African Police Service (SAPS), the Department of Community Safety, the City of Cape Town, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and more were meeting on Wednesday to agree on a co-ordinated and integrated response to the escalating taxi violence that has claimed 116 lives since 2020.
He said his department would also be briefing council to take on the criminal elements within taxi associations and groups who are involved in hijackings and extorting payments from legal operating buses and taxis.
“I call on the majority of law-abiding taxi operators to identify the criminals – hitmen and paymasters who tarnish the image of an industry and of operators who seek to earn a living through offering a much-needed service to the poorest communities,” Madikizela said.
He said law-enforcement and transport authorities would do everything possible to ensure that commuters were safe on public transport.
* Additional reporting by Theolin Tembo.
African News Agency (ANA)