Residents of Walmer township are on tenterhooks after four young people were shot execution-style in a shack in the early hours of Friday.
When a Herald team visited the crime scene in Ndlovu Street, Airport Valley, neighbours were still horrified about the gruesome killings.
A large contingent of police officers and investigators were still canvassing the area and speaking to residents.
Inside the shack, clothes and pillows lay stewn on top of what looked like a makeshift bed that was soaked with blood.
It seemed as if the deceased were asleep or lined up close together during the shooting.
On top of a table there was bottlekop or bottleneck — often used to smoke drugs — and what appeared to be the burnt remnants of drugs next to a sharp folding-knife and dirty dishes.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Nobuntu Gantana said a manhunt had been launched after the murder of two brothers, aged 20 and 22, and two young women, aged 17 and 19.
She said preliminary reports indicated that the incident happened just after midnight.
Gantana said police responded to a complaint of a shooting received via radio control.
“Upon arrival, they were met by the complainant outside the premises, who led them to a shack on the property.
“Inside the shack, police found the bodies of four victims, all of whom had sustained fatal gunshot wounds,” Gantana said.
The complainant stayed in the shack, which belonged to his mother. He was not home at the time of the attack.
Gantana said a preliminary investigation revealed that both young men had sustained gunshot wounds to the right side of the face.
“Both female victims sustained gunshot wounds to the head.
“The motive for the attack remains unknown and is part of the ongoing investigation.”
She said the complainant indicated that he had briefly left the premises to go to a nearby shop.
“Upon his return, he discovered the bodies inside the shack. Four counts of murder have been opened.”
A resident who lives nearby said she heard multiple gunshots and later the footsteps of the alleged perpetrators.
“I didn’t think much about it. I thought it was someone working on a shack.
“The shots felt like a hammer hitting a corrugated iron sheet and then it went quiet.
“I didn’t hear any screams. All I heard after that were footsteps. I think it was more than two individuals.”
A second resident said when she heard the gunshots, she jumped off her bed and took cover.
“I laid down until I made sure that it was over. The shots were loud.”
She said murders were prevalent in other areas in Airport Valley, but not in the vicinity of Friday’s shootings.
A relative of the complainant confirmed that the young man had moved to the area recently, lived alone and was unemployed.
“He was taking piece jobs [casual jobs] here and there. He loves people. He’s friendly.
“But I have been telling him about my concerns that he was hanging with these abatshana [young people of his age],” the relative said.
He said he was not aware of the young man being involved in any gang or drug-related activities.
“He is still alive but we are hurting, especially his mother. I feel for the parents who have lost their children,” he said.
A community leader said the recently deployed SANDF soldiers should also be on patrol in Walmer location.
“There is a lot of crime in our community and it involves young people.
“They are killing each other almost daily.
“We’d like to have soldiers here.
“Police told me that soldiers have not been allocated for us but have also said that this is being considered,” he said.
Ward councillor Nozuko Teyise failed to respond by the time of publication.
Troops have been deployed to parts of the Nelson Mandela Bay metro as part of Operation Prosper, a joint security initiative to support the police in combating gang violence, extortion and other serious crimes across the country.
In the Bay, the focus is predominantly on the gang-ridden northern areas and township crime hotspots.
The operation will focus on drug networks, illegal firearms, extortion syndicates and construction mafias.
Newly appointed Eastern Cape police commissioner Lieutenant-General Vuyisile Ncata gave the marching orders for the operation earlier in April.
During a joint parade with the men and women in blue, Ncata confirmed that the 290 soldiers were first undergoing orientation.
Ncata said their focus in the Bay would be on gang violence, which has had people living in fear in communities such as Gelvandale, Chatty, Kamesh and Algoa Park.
He said the operation extended to criminal elements operating in Humansdorp and Jeffreys Bay.
Once Gqeberha’s northern areas had been stabilised, attention would shift to other parts of the Bay, such as the townships.
He said President Cyril Ramaphosa had issued a clear mandate to prevent and combat gangsterism.
Anyone with information that could assist the investigation into the Walmer township killings is urged to contact Lieutenant-Colonel Monde Sithole on 082-457-2812 or Crime Stop on 08600-10111.
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