CAPE TOWN, June 28– Three people were shot dead and several others escaped after armed suspects opened fire inside a shack in a township in Cape Town, South Africa, on Saturday evening, police said on Sunday, in what is believed to have been a targeted attack.
The shooting occurred at about 7:00 p.m. local time in the Kanana informal settlement in Gugulethu, a township located on the Cape Flats about 15 to 20 km southeast of Cape Town city centre, the South African Police Service (SAPS) said in a statement.
According to the statement, three armed suspects arrived at a shack allegedly looking for the owner of the dwelling. When they discovered she was not at home, the suspects reportedly remained at the property waiting for her to return.
The statement said that when the woman arrived back at the shack, the suspects opened fire on her and the other occupants. “A 41-year-old woman, a 46-year-old woman, and a 21-year-old man sustained fatal gunshot wounds and were declared deceased on the scene.
Several other occupants managed to flee during the attack and escaped unharmed,” police said. The SAPS Provincial Serious Violent Crime Unit is now investigating the incident.
The motive for the shooting is yet to be determined, although preliminary information suggests that the incident may have been a targeted attack. No arrests have been made so far, and the investigation remains ongoing.
In a separate statement, Western Cape Minister of Police Oversight and Community Safety Anroux Marais strongly condemned the violence.
“I am deeply saddened and outraged by yet another senseless act of violence that has claimed three lives and left families and the broader community devastated,” she said. (Namibia Daily News / Xinhua)
