Two people were killed and another was left wounded in a brazen shooting in Langa on Monday night, June 9, as violence linked to the minibus taxi sector once again rocked the Cape Flats.

This comes just days after four people were killed in another taxi-related shooting incident in Mfuleni.

Police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg confirmed that one of the victims, an adult male, was shot and killed inside a minibus taxi on Winnie Mandela Street.

“Police members attended to the crime scene where they found the victim inside a minibus taxi with gunshot wounds to his body. The victim was declared deceased on the scene by medical personnel,” said Twigg.

The suspects fled the scene and remain at large.

Langa detectives have launched a murder investigation and are urging members of the public with any information to come forward.

The Western Cape Government has condemned the latest killings, which it says are placing the taxi industry and the communities it serves under immense pressure.

Western Cape Mobility Minister Isaac Sileku expressed his alarm.

“More lives have been lost to criminality. We cannot allow this to continue. These killings are robbing families of loved ones and placing the entire mini-bus taxi industry, as well as the communities it serves, under threat.” said Sileku.

Sileku called for calm and cooperation among all parties.

“We must never accept violence as a way to resolve disputes. Protecting lives and ensuring safety across the public transport network remains central to our mission.”

Police Oversight and Community Safety Minister Anroux Marais echoed the call for peace.

“Violence is not the answer. We will not tolerate these acts of violence. I urge the SAPS to deal decisively with those responsible,” she said, adding that police presence in affected areas has been intensified.

Law enforcement agencies, including the City of Cape Town’s Law Enforcement and Provincial Traffic units, have been deployed to assist SAPS in stabilising the area.

High-density patrols are underway along key routes between Somerset West and Mfuleni.

Western Cape Mobility Department spokesperson Muneera Allie said the government remains committed to working closely with law enforcement and industry players.

“The Department of Mobility, in close collaboration with safety and law enforcement agencies, remains focused on fostering peaceful resolutions and ensuring that public transport remains safe, reliable, and dignified for all who depend on it,” Allie said.

The province extended condolences to those affected, stating “The Western Cape government stands united in our efforts to restore peace and safeguard every commuter, operator, and transport worker in our province.”

IOL News

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