Police said gunmen killed 12 people and wounded nine in a late-night attack on a Johannesburg informal settlement, with the motive still under investigation.
Gunmen killed 12 people in a late-night attack on an informal settlement in Johannesburg, South African police said Wednesday, in a shooting that authorities said may be tied to criminal competition around illegal mining.
The attack happened shortly after 11 p.m. Tuesday in the Cleveland area, near the Jumpers settlement east of Johannesburg’s city centre. Police said nine other people were wounded and that no arrests had been made.
Authorities said the attackers arrived in a vehicle, entered the settlement and fired on residents at several locations before fleeing. Police accounts described around 10 or more than 10 assailants, with one account saying they had been dropped off by minibus.
Police said 11 victims died at the scene and one died later in hospital. The victims were identified by police as nine men and three women, though an earlier police breakdown described eight men and three women declared dead at the scene, with one additional person dying in hospital.
Investigators have not announced a motive. But police officials said the location of the attack, near areas where illegal miners live and work, was part of the inquiry.
“As you know, this area is adjacent to the illegal mining area. We are having those suspicions,” provincial commissioner Lt. Gen. Tommy Mthombeni told reporters at the scene, while also cautioning that the investigation was continuing.
Police said the shooters moved through the settlement, opening fire on residents and community members at multiple points. Ambulances were at the scene Wednesday morning as community members gathered in the streets.
Informal settlements are common in and around South Africa’s largest cities, where many residents live in shacks or other makeshift housing. The Johannesburg area has also struggled with violence linked to illicit mining in abandoned gold mines, where criminal groups compete for control of underground operations and surrounding territory.
A local council member, Neuren Pietersen, told eNCA that Cleveland is connected to illegal mining activity, but said other tensions in the community could also be involved. “There are a lot of moving parts here so it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what is driving the issues,” he said.
South Africa has recorded extremely high levels of violent crime, with official statistics showing more than 23,000 homicides in the last financial year, an average of more than 60 a day. Police have also linked some recent mass shootings to criminal gangs, including groups involved in illegal mining and other illicit activity.
The government deployed soldiers to some high-risk areas of Johannesburg in March to support police operations against organized crime. For now, police said specialist crime intelligence officers were working the Cleveland case as the search for the attackers continued.
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