Two teens arrested for Philippi East massacre

Respite may finally come for grieving family members gripped by fear after the murders of five young men in Philippi East, Cape Town, last week.

This is after detectives, supported by the public order police reserve unit, swooped on a residence in Delft on Monday afternoon and arrested two teenagers on murder charges.

Sive Thomas and four of his friends were in a house in Block 4, Philippi East, on Tuesday last week when they were killed by seven gunmen. His family said they are too afraid to sleep at home following the attack.

Community members told TimesLIVE at the time that Thomas and his friends were robbed of their phones after returning from work.

They then approached a friend of the young men who robbed them. They alleged that the men then returned to eliminate them for daring to stand up to them.

According to Western Cape police spokesperson Brig Novela Potelwa, detectives followed information and descended on a residence on Delft Main Road, where they arrested the two suspects, aged 18 and 19. 

“Four young men were killed and another one died in hospital after seven suspects stormed into a house in Block 4 in Philippi East in the evening of Tuesday June 30 and started shooting randomly,” she said.

“The arrested suspects are expected in the Athlone magistrate’s court on Wednesday on charges of murder. As the investigation unfolds more arrests are imminent.”