Gunman fatally wounded in shoot-out with Cape Town metro police

A 35-year-old man has died after allegedly shooting at Cape Town metro police who returned fire. 

The incident happened in Manenberg around 7pm  on Tuesday.

Councillor JP Smith, responsible for safety and security, said the officers were “on patrol in Manenberg as part of the city’s deployment to assist the SA Police Service in response to the increase in gang violence in the area”.

“Officers heard gunfire and saw a suspect crouching in Rio Grande Street, discharging a firearm. They ordered him to lower his weapon but he fired at them and when officers returned fire, the suspect ran away,” said Smith.

“The wounded suspect collapsed shortly afterwards and officers immediately summoned medical assistance — however, the 35-year-old male was declared dead by medical personnel a short while later.”

Smith said a 9mm pistol without a serial number was recovered, along with six rounds of ammunition in the magazine.

“The scene was handed over to the police for further processing and investigation,” he said. “The city has also availed members of its safety and security investigation unit to help the police, where needed.

“With gang violence plaguing several communities, the city is doing all it can to curb the violence, including deploying additional operational resources and using all available technology such as gunshot detection, CCTV surveillance, along with dashboard cameras and body-worn cameras where available.”

Smith said the community turned on the officers after the shooting.

“It is of concern that, after the officers subdued the suspect in Manenberg, they were faced with hostility from some in the community,” said Smith.

“It cannot be that the very communities who are desperately pleading for assistance and intervention turn on enforcement services in this manner. Nor can it be that the national government does not acknowledge, and address, the crisis of ever-increasing gang violence through improved resourcing of the SAPS and the criminal justice system as a whole.”

Smith said, “Every few weeks and months, communities on the Cape Flats are subjected to indiscriminate violence as gang conflict flares up — it is a seemingly never-ending cycle. It raises serious questions as to who is funding the organised crime syndicates in the Western Cape, and how they are able to obtain such a steady source of weapons and ammunition,” he said.

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