A group of armed attackers drove into a poor neighborhood in South Africa's biggest city, got out of a minivan and opened fire at residents in a late-night attack in Johannesburg that killed 12 people and wounded at least nine, police said Wednesday, per the AP. The attack unfolded late on Tuesday night in an informal settlement in the city's Cleveland suburb, police said, adding that there were at least 10 suspected attackers who later fled the scene. Johannesburg has long been the scene of organized crime gangs vying for control of illegal mining or other activities, though police said the motive of the last shooting was still under investigation.
Police said the shooters were dropped off at the settlement in a minibus "and moved through the area, opening fire on residents and community members at multiple locations before fleeing the scene in the same vehicle." The victims were nine men and three women, according to police. Eleven died at the scene and another victim died in the hospital. Police said a search was launched for the suspects and the vehicle but that no arrests had been made.
Provincial police commissioner Tommy Mthombeni called the killings "insane, heartless and, to a certain extent, barbaric." He said it was too early to link them to illegal mining gangs as an investigation was underway, but police were considering that as a possible motive. He said a recent police operation in the area had confiscated illegal firearms, including assault rifles, and illegal miners were known to operate there. Acting national police commissioner Puleng Dimpane said in a statement that specialist forensic investigators and tactical response teams have been deployed. Tracing the white minibus was a priority, Dimpane said.
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