Two men brutally killed in revenge-style shooting

In what appears to be Mafia-style revenge killings, two men were shot at the Playland entertainment park in Muledane on Sunday. The killings sparked fear that many more will be killed, including people not involved in the feuds between rival gangs.

The spokesperson for the police in Limpopo, Brigadier Hlulani Mashaba, said that the incident had happened at around 21:00. “The two victims were with three women at the resort, relaxing next to their motor vehicles, a maroon VW Golf and a silver-grey BMW. It was after the women left them at the cars to go fetch their phones that were being charged at the nearby offices, that [they] heard gunshots but did not know where they emanated from. It was only after their return that they found both men lying down with multiple gunshot wounds. They then summoned the police and emergency personnel services. The victims were certified dead at the scene,” he said.

Mashaba said that the police were investigating two murder cases. Many empty cartridges were found at the scene.

The victims have since been identified as Mr. Lindelani Stephen Nembambula (37) of Mianzwi village and Mr. Silas Simango (40) of Tswinga village. The men are alleged to be members of the Tshisole gang, which in recent times lost prominent members in what is believed to be revenge killings.

Brig Mashaba said that no one had been arrested in connection with the killings. He added that the motive for the killing was currently unknown.

An anonymous source with some knowledge of the gang activities said that the latest killings had sparked fear as to who would be next. “This must probably be the continuation of killings by rival groups in the underworld for reasons best known to them. Our fear is that even innocent lives could be lost in the crossfire,” he said.

The source said that the killers had known exactly what they were doing and had even waited for load shedding to make their work easier.

Silas Simango was also known as Hosi ya Mina. The two deceased were rumoured to be facing charges of robbery, murder, and attempted murder, but this could not be confirmed.

The past weekend’s killings were strongly condemned by Limpopo Police Commissioner Lt Gen Thembi Radebe, who called upon community members to assist with information that could lead to the arrest of the suspects. “Anyone with information that can assist with the arrest of the suspects should contact the investigating officer, Sgt Takalani Mulaudzi, at 082-4876319, 015-9601000, the crime stop number 0860010111, or the nearest police station or share information on MySAPSApp,” she said.

Date:24 November 2023

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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