Police in South Africa’s Eastern Cape province have launched a manhunt after five members of the same family were shot dead in their home near Port St Johns.
The attack occurred in the early hours of Friday morning in Bityi, a rural area about 30km from the coastal town.
According to police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Siphokazi Mawisa, two gunmen first entered a rondavel where the parents were sleeping and shot them dead. They then opened fire on another house in the same compound, killing three more family members and injuring two children.
“Two males and three females died while the two injured children were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment,” Mawisa said.
The provincial police commissioner, Lieutenant General Nomthetheleli Mene, has condemned the killings and deployed a team of detectives to track down the attackers.
Recent violence
This incident comes just weeks after another mass shooting in the region. Last month, 18 people were killed in Ngobozana village, Lusikisiki, about 80km south of Bityi.
Four suspects have been arrested in connection with the Lusikisiki attack, including a 45-year-old man who was out on parole. On Friday, police made two more arrests and recovered high-calibre firearms believed to be linked to the case.
The motives behind these attacks remain unclear, but they have raised concerns about violence in the rural Eastern Cape.
Local authorities are urging anyone with information about the Bityi shooting to come forward and assist with the investigation.