By Buziwe Nocuze
- Police have launched a manhunt after seven men aged 20 to 30 were shot and burnt in a Philippi East home.
- The victims had only lived in the area for three weeks after being transferred to work at Philippi mall.
A quiet night in Better Life township turned into horror when seven men were found shot and burnt inside a house in Philippi East, Cape Town.
The victims had been renting rooms in the house from local owner Sisa Mateyisi, who said he was devastated by what he saw.
“Someone came to me and said there were people looking for a place to rent,” said Mateyisi. “I agreed for them to stay in my house.”
He said there were three men at first, but it later turned out that 11 people were living there.
Mateyisi said he rushed to the house when a neighbour told him it was on fire. “When I got there, I saw the body of a man burning, and he was shot. Then I saw smoke coming from another room where six more men were shot and burnt,” he said.
A woman who had been sleeping in another room came outside screaming. Another tenant, who survived by pretending to be dead, only came out after police and paramedics arrived.
The victims had moved to Philippi three weeks earlier. “They were from Flagstaff in the Eastern Cape and had been transferred from Khayelitsha to work at Philippi mall,” said Mateyisi.
He said he is struggling to cope after seeing the crime scene. “I am not feeling okay. I don’t know what to do as there is a lot of blood,” he said.
Western Cape police spokesperson Colonel Andre Traut said detectives from the Provincial Serious and Violent Crimes Unit are investigating.
“They have launched a large-scale manhunt to find those responsible for this brutal attack,” said Traut.
Pictured above: Seven men were shot and burnt inside a house in Better Life township, Philippi East, Cape Town.
Image source: Buziwe Nocuze
