Police launch manhunt after 12 killed in Johannesburg informal settlement shooting
South African police are searching for more than ten suspects who opened fire in the Jumpers informal settlement in Johannesburg, killing 12 people and injuring nine.
At least 12 people were killed and nine injured when a group of suspects opened fire in the Jumpers informal settlement in Cleveland, a suburb of Johannesburg, on Tuesday night, police said. The suspects were dropped off by a white van around 11 p.m. and entered the settlement through both entrances, firing at residents at multiple locations before fleeing in the same vehicle.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) said a manhunt has been launched, with provincial and district detectives, crime-intelligence officers and forensic experts mobilised to investigate and locate the suspects. No arrests have been made and a motive has not been identified.
Eight men and three women were pronounced dead at the scene; a ninth victim died later in hospital. Nine other victims were taken to hospitals with gunshot injuries.
Johannesburg’s metropolitan area contains many semi-permanent informal settlements, which are largely illegal and built from discarded materials. Amnesty International estimates that more than five million South Africans live in such settlements.