Two-year-old Singalakha Ndamane from Duncan Village survived a bullet in a volley sprayed into the community by drug-fuelled gangsters fighting a vicious turf war.
A thug’s bullet drilled into little Singalakha’s back at 8pm as he sat having supper and watching television with his dad in their shack on February 20.
Gang war had broken out in a C-Section street. It left suspected gang members Xolile Ngcambo, 25, and Fuzile Mzamo, 25, lying fatally wounded outside the Ndamane shack, and inside a bleeding Singalakha being cradled by his horrified dad, Siphelele Batakati.
A two-week Daily Dispatch special investigation into gangs operating in the squalid settlement – with one of the highest murder rates in Buffalo City Metro – revealed a picture of violence fuelled by drugs and illicit gun trade.
But Eastern Cape police played down the problem, saying there was not enough evidence to suggest that the recent killings were gang-related.
Police spokesman Captain Stephen Marais said Duncan Village detectives had worked hard for many years to eliminate the problem of gangsterism in the township.
“At the moment the cases in front of us are being dealt with individually and are not being treated as gang-related.
“All known gangsters were (arrested) and are serving lengthy sentences in prison; some were chased out of the community by residents,” said Marais.
Some gangsters had been killed by rival gang members, he said.
Singalakha’s parents, Batakati and Ntombizanele Ndamane, both unemployed, flagged down a car and rushed their child to Frere Hospital.
“There was just no time to stop and assist the wounded men. Our attention was on our one and only son. We had to get a car to rush him to hospital and worry about other things later,” said Batakati.
Ndamane said she heard shots being fired outside and before she could make sense of the situation a bullet smashed into the shack and hit her son in the back, exiting from his stomach.
“I only realised that my son had been hit when he started crying and complaining of being hot. He kept on saying ‘Mom I am hot! I am burning’!” said Ndamane.
Provincial health spokesman Sizwe Kupelo said the boy had been admitted to the Frere in a critical condition. He was there for five days. Kupelo said the bullet had damaged Singalakha’s liver, but he did not know how this would affect him later in life. While Singalakha is back at home and playing again, he has been experiencing flashbacks.
“He keeps on asking me whether he will be shot again,” said his dad.
The Dispatch visited the home of Ngcambo after learning he had been shot while dealing drugs in a street that belonged to a rival gang.
Marais confirmed they had seized nine mandrax tablets from Ngcambo’s body at the scene.
Ngcambo and Mzama were wanted by police in connection with serious crimes involving armed robberies, attempted murder and the pointing of a firearm.
His grandmother Totozan Ngcambo, 84, said he had been shot twice in the past.
“The police did not do anything then.
“Why should I expect them to do something this time around?
“Even if they arrest the shooter, will that bring my grandson back?
“I really do not have anything more to say, but just that children must stop killing each other. It is enough now,” she said.
Two days after Ngcambo and Mzamo were killed, another well-known gang member, David “Whitey” Gontshi, was shot dead in his bed by three assailants.
His girlfriend, sleeping next to him, was shot nine times but survived.
Gontshi made news headlines in August 2012 when he was arrested along with his twin brother, Banile “Blacky” Gontshi, by members of the police’s tactical response team.
The twins and another gang member, Luwando “GTI” Bhukula, were wanted in connection with a spate of armed robberies of foreign-owned spaza shops.
They face 13 charges ranging from murder, attempted murder and armed robbery to possession of unlicensed weapons.
Duncan Village police detectives tasked with investigating the shootings have not been able to apprehend the suspects.
Marais said the shooters were still at large.
He said two dockets of murder and one of attempted murder in connection with Singalakha’s shooting had been opened.
The police will not talk publicly about gang warfare, and will only refer to specific charges and incidents. But behind the scenes there are strong indications that gangs and syndicates are involved.
PHOTO GALLERY: GANGLAND TERROR RAGES
A thug’s bullet drilled into little Singalakha’s back at 8pm as he sat having supper and watching television with his dad in their shack on February 20.
Gang war had broken out in a C-Section street. It left suspected gang members Xolile Ngcambo, 25, and Fuzile Mzamo, 25, lying fatally wounded outside the Ndamane shack, and inside a bleeding Singalakha being cradled by his horrified dad, Siphelele Batakati.
A two-week Daily Dispatch special investigation into gangs operating in the squalid settlement – with one of the highest murder rates in Buffalo City Metro – revealed a picture of violence fuelled by drugs and illicit gun trade.
But Eastern Cape police played down the problem, saying there was not enough evidence to suggest that the recent killings were gang-related.
Police spokesman Captain Stephen Marais said Duncan Village detectives had worked hard for many years to eliminate the problem of gangsterism in the township.
“At the moment the cases in front of us are being dealt with individually and are not being treated as gang-related.
“All known gangsters were (arrested) and are serving lengthy sentences in prison; some were chased out of the community by residents,” said Marais.
Some gangsters had been killed by rival gang members, he said.
Singalakha’s parents, Batakati and Ntombizanele Ndamane, both unemployed, flagged down a car and rushed their child to Frere Hospital.
“There was just no time to stop and assist the wounded men. Our attention was on our one and only son. We had to get a car to rush him to hospital and worry about other things later,” said Batakati.
Ndamane said she heard shots being fired outside and before she could make sense of the situation a bullet smashed into the shack and hit her son in the back, exiting from his stomach.
“I only realised that my son had been hit when he started crying and complaining of being hot. He kept on saying ‘Mom I am hot! I am burning’!” said Ndamane.
Provincial health spokesman Sizwe Kupelo said the boy had been admitted to the Frere in a critical condition. He was there for five days. Kupelo said the bullet had damaged Singalakha’s liver, but he did not know how this would affect him later in life. While Singalakha is back at home and playing again, he has been experiencing flashbacks.
“He keeps on asking me whether he will be shot again,” said his dad.
The Dispatch visited the home of Ngcambo after learning he had been shot while dealing drugs in a street that belonged to a rival gang.
Marais confirmed they had seized nine mandrax tablets from Ngcambo’s body at the scene.
Ngcambo and Mzama were wanted by police in connection with serious crimes involving armed robberies, attempted murder and the pointing of a firearm.
His grandmother Totozan Ngcambo, 84, said he had been shot twice in the past.
“The police did not do anything then.
“Why should I expect them to do something this time around?
“Even if they arrest the shooter, will that bring my grandson back?
“I really do not have anything more to say, but just that children must stop killing each other. It is enough now,” she said.
Two days after Ngcambo and Mzamo were killed, another well-known gang member, David “Whitey” Gontshi, was shot dead in his bed by three assailants.
His girlfriend, sleeping next to him, was shot nine times but survived.
Gontshi made news headlines in August 2012 when he was arrested along with his twin brother, Banile “Blacky” Gontshi, by members of the police’s tactical response team.
The twins and another gang member, Luwando “GTI” Bhukula, were wanted in connection with a spate of armed robberies of foreign-owned spaza shops.
They face 13 charges ranging from murder, attempted murder and armed robbery to possession of unlicensed weapons.
Duncan Village police detectives tasked with investigating the shootings have not been able to apprehend the suspects.
Marais said the shooters were still at large.
He said two dockets of murder and one of attempted murder in connection with Singalakha’s shooting had been opened.
The police will not talk publicly about gang warfare, and will only refer to specific charges and incidents. But behind the scenes there are strong indications that gangs and syndicates are involved.
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