The SAPS says it is too early to link the mass shootings in Cleveland, Johannesburg to illegal mining, but community leaders and political parties say illegal gold refining syndicates in the area are the primary drivers of the local bloodshed.
WARNING: This article contains graphic descriptions of a violent crime.
“Oh my God, can anyone hear us? The jumpers are on fire. Please send the police.”
This was the voice note that Richard Francis, chairman of the Cleveland Community Policing Forum, received from a resident on Tuesday evening, when about 10 heavily armed men burst into the Jumpers informal settlement in Cleveland, Johannesburg and opened fire indiscriminately at residents.
A search has been launched for suspects in the mass shooting that left 12 people dead and 10 others injured.
Francis said he received many calls from members of the Jumpers community as the mass shooting was happening. Residents said the firing continued for more than an hour.
Francis said, “I got a voice note from this woman who said the jumpers were on fire, and I knew she wasn't talking about literal fires, which happens from time to time. She was talking about the sound of gunshots.”
The acting national police commissioner, Lieutenant-General Puleng Dimpen, has appointed a special team to investigate the mass shooting and assigned members of national units to boost local forces. These include members of forensic services, tactical response teams and other specialized investigative resources to expedite identification, detection and apprehension efforts…