The police have mobilised additional resources to restore calm in Westbury, Johannesburg following the ongoing shootings. Last Thursday, an alleged gang boss, Keenan Sheldon Ebrahim, was shot dead in Florida. Since his murder, Noordgesig, Eldorado Park, Riverlea and Westbury residents have been living in fear of getting caught in the crossfire. Reports state that on Sunday alone, two people were shot dead while eleven were badly injured in the Westbury gang shooting.
LUCKY TO BE ALIVE
A community member, Lucas Lefutso, said residents were locked in prayer and thanked God for making it to the next day. He said no one, not even gang members themselves, can be at ease while gunshots ring for most of the night. "It's not a normal thing and it shouldn't be accepted. The police need to pull their weight on this one and hear the plight of the residents. What kind of children are we raising? We need a permanent solution to this problem."
HEAVY POLICE PRESENCE
The Provincial Commissioner of Gauteng, Lieutenant General Elias Mawela says he has mobilised extra resources following several shooting incidents over the weekend at Westbury and Newclare. Mobilised resources include members from the Provincial and District Crime Intelligence, Public Order Police, Technical Response Team, K9, Flying Squad Provincial Anti Gang unit (both Crime Prevention and Detectives), as well as members from the other four Districts (Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, West Rand and Sedibeng) and Johannesburg Metro Police. These extra forces have been deployed on a 24-hour basis to augment the operations that had already been in place to deal with gangsterism in Johannesburg District. "According to the information at hand, six separate shooting incidents were reported since Friday night to date whereby 11 people were injured and two declared dead. The circumstances surrounding all incidents are still not clear at this stage and police are continuing with investigations. The police are following up on any information received and one suspect has since been arrested for a case of attempted murder,' says Mawela.
WORKING TOGETHER
A plea is made to the community of Westbury and surrounding areas to please work together with the police in ensuring that the perpetrators are arrested. Anyone with information that can assist with the investigation or arrest is requested to contact their nearest police station or the Crime Stop Line at 08600 10111. Anonymous tip-offs can also be reported on MySaps app which can be downloaded on any smartphone.
SERVICES INTERRUPTED
City Power CEO Tshifularo Mashava has urged law-enforcement agencies to swiftly restore stability in the area."We urge the South African Police Service to bring the situation under control in that part of the city, not only to enable smooth delivery of services, but to protect innocent lives that could be lost if this heightened level of violence continues unabated.We will continue to monitor the situation and if things remain the same, we will consider bringing in JMPD to escort our technicians to site to carry out critical repair work,' she said.
