Three members of the Witwatersrand African Taxi Association (Wata) were shot and killed in Mofolo, Soweto, on Monday morning.
The three men were fatally wounded at about 8am while driving on Zulu Drive from the south of Mofolo village towards Dube, according to Gauteng police spokesperson Colonel Noxolo Kweza.
“Three people were shot and killed this morning at about 8am. We received a call about the shooting, and our members from the taxi violence unit responded,” Kweza said.
“A silver-grey car pulled up and started shooting at the three people’s car. High-calibre cartridges were found at the scene. No one has been arrested at this stage.”
Kweza said investigations are continuing.
Motive for the killing unknown
According to Kweza, the deceased are “members of a taxi association”, but police do not know the reason behind the killings.
“We are unable to rule anything out at this time. We are looking into all of those possibilities,” she said.
She added that the deceased men are in their late 30s. Police are aware of the identities of the deceased, but Kweza stated that they will not yet make them public because they still wish to notify the three men’s families about the tragedy.
Hamilton Miya, a Wata spokesperson, attested to the fact that the three men were members of the taxi association.
“The people who were killed are our squad monitors; my colleagues and I were in the office when we heard gunshots. We rushed to the scene and found them dead,” Miya said.
“This is painful; we do not know who did this, and we do not want to speculate at this point on who is behind this shooting.
“We do not want to say anything that will interfere with the police investigations.”
Police combing through the scene
Police had taped off the area with yellow crime scene tape when Sunday World arrived on Zulu Drive in Mofolo.
The white Toyota Corolla driven by the three men who were killed had collided with a tree and was still on Zulu Drive.
The driver’s door was covered in blood, and the bodies of the three men were still inside their car.
Residents of Mofolo watched as forensic experts combed the scene for evidence, noting the numerous bullet holes visible in the white car’s windows.
Police were also present to keep an eye on the situation.
