The target in a brazen daylight shooting at a popular Gqeberha auto dealership has a lengthy rap sheet, with a string of gang-related cases attached to it.
As police continue to investigate the failed hit, in which a casual worker at Maritime Motors survived after at least six shots were fired at him, concerns are mounting that gangsterism plaguing Nelson Mandela Bay’s northern areas is spilling over into other parts of the city.
What police have established so far is that the shooting was gang-related, and that the vehicle used in the commission of the offence, and later burned, was hijacked in Soweto-on-Sea last month.
It has now emerged that the 31-year-old target has also served jail time for attempted murder and the illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.
The dramatic encounter occurred at the car dealership on the William Moffett Expressway on Wednesday afternoon.
CCTV footage of the attack, circulated widely on social media, and seen by Weekend Post, shows a lone gunman entering the service centre reception area at about 3.30pm.
He points a firearm at his target, seated at a desk against a wall.
Several shots are fired.
The victim tries to jump away, flipping the desk over in the process.
Further shots are fired, and he eventually collapses.
The suspect, wearing a reflector vest and a blue Covid-19 face mask, climbs into a white Toyota Corolla — seen in the area earlier in the day — and speeds off.
The vehicle was later found abandoned and on fire in Buffelsfontein Road, Walmer.
No-one else was injured in the incident, raising questions about the motive for the shooting.
Police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu confirmed that the incident was gang-related.
A police source close to the investigation said the victim had a rap sheet filled with cases related to alleged gang activities.
The man, whose name is being withheld for his own safety, has been in and out of court several times in the past eight years.
In August 2018, he was found guilty of and sentenced to five years’ imprisonment for the illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition for his involvement in the July 2016 murder of Renaldo Africa.
His co-accused, Shane Horne, was found guilty of murder and was sentenced to an effective 15 years in prison.
At the time, police believed the man was affiliated to one of Gqeberha’s main gangs, the Upstand Dogs.
He was also previously found guilty of attempted murder for an incident in Gelvandale in 2017.
In that matter he was also sentenced to five years’ imprisonment.
According to the police source, the man has a list of prior cases and convictions, including the illegal possession of drugs.
“There is definitely a gang affiliation here.
“With all the priors to his name you can see he [allegedly] played an active role in gangs.
“He [allegedly] had a function in a gang because not all gangsters get guns, so he may have been a possible hitman,” the source said.
As to the motive for Wednesday’s shooting, the officer said it was not clear whether the man was a state witness, if he had since left his gang, or joined a rival gang.
“It is a definite hit. There were at least 16 spent cartridges found on the scene,” he said.
Shortly after the incident, Maritime Motors dealer principal Wikus Loots said the man had been working for the dealership for about three months, and had been on his way to becoming a permanent employee.
Loots described him as a friendly person who got along with everyone, and went out of his way for others.
After the rumours about the man’s gang affiliation surfaced, Loots refused to comment further.
In a WhatsApp message sent to Weekend Post, Loots said: “Considering the facts I’m really sorry that I can’t divulge any further information or details.”
Naidu said the case had since been taken over by the provincial organised crime anti-gang unit.
She said the victim was still receiving treatment in hospital.
Naidu confirmed the man’s name had been linked to previous charges and convictions, but declined to elaborate.
A northern areas community member, who asked not to be identified for fear of her life, said she knew the man as someone who caused problems in the area.
His family have apparently since asked for police protection.
By Thursday afternoon, police were yet to interview the man because he was still under heavy sedation, according to Naidu.
He was shot several times in his legs and an arm.
This is not the first time a suspected northern areas gang-related incident has occurred elsewhere in the city.
In April last year, three people, including an innocent bystander, were fatally wounded in a gang-related shooting at a bus depot in Perridgevale.
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