Just two days before his birthday, a four-year-old boy was tragically shot and killed while sleeping beside his pregnant mother in Wesbank.
Little Davin Afrika, aged 4, was struck by two bullets in his back on Friday night.
His heartbroken aunt, Letania Smith, 31, shared that she received a call from her sister at around 10 p.m. informing her of the shooting.
“When I arrived, the police had not yet come, and my nephew was still lying there. He had been in bed with his mother when this happened,” Smith recalled.
The shooter, according to Smith, was standing in the yard and fired shots at the Wendy house where her sister and her family were. The shooter then aimed at the servant’s quarters, hitting a man twice in the back and three times in the leg.
Smith mentioned that the shooter did not enter the property.
“The police found 25 bullet casings on the scene, so it was clear that the shooter didn’t go inside,” she added.
This tragedy comes just over a year after her 12-year-old niece, Kelly-Amber Koopman, was also shot during a violent attack.
“In November 2023, my niece was shot in the head during load shedding. Now my sister has lost two children to gang violence. She is left with a three-year-old daughter and is five months pregnant,” Smith said, adding that her family has endured immense hardship, with the fathers of her children also victims of violence.
Smith explained that the ongoing gang conflict in Wesbank involves the Americans and the Dixie Boys gangs.
RELATED NEWS
- High Court Allows Masedza Family to Rebury Religious Figure After 50 Years
- Horrific Betrayal: Man Rapes Brother’s Three Daughters
- Zimbabwean Migrant Care Workers in the UK Face Exploitation and Dire Living Conditions
- Heartbroken Harare Woman Threatens to Leak Ex’s Intimate Photos
- Pereira: Munetsi’s Physicality and Goal-Scoring Ability Key for Wolves
“There have been shootings almost every day in E-block, especially on Sundays. The police do not patrol here. When I arrived at the scene, the police hadn’t shown up yet, and we struggled to get the ambulance. The people here are fed up with the police. We’ve lost faith in them,” she said, recalling a past incident where the police arrived too late to save a neighbor who had been shot.
Gang Violence Claims Life of Four-Year-Old in Wesbank, Authorities Investigate
“The people want the president to visit Wesbank. Our situation is dire. We can’t send our children to school or even to the shops. We live in constant fear, caught between two gangs fighting for control,” Smith stated.
Elvina Cleghorn, founder of the Wesbank Women’s Movement, expressed their need for a police presence in the area.
“We have protested several times asking for our own police station. We’re dissatisfied with Mfuleni police station, and yet we’re still waiting. The violence continues, and authorities falsely claim that shootings have decreased,” Cleghorn said. “The confiscated weapons are making their way back onto the streets.”
Police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg confirmed that investigations into the Friday evening shooting are underway.
“Upon arrival, police found two victims with gunshot wounds. The four-year-old boy was declared dead at the scene, while the other victim, a 30-year-old man, was taken to the hospital. We are still working to determine the motive for the attack. The suspect(s) fled the scene and are yet to be arrested,” Twigg explained.
“Mfuleni detectives are investigating the cases of murder and attempted murder,” he added.
Anyone with information on the incident is encouraged to contact Crime Stop at 08600 10111.
