2024 Lusikisiki shootings
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| 2024 Lusikisiki shootings | |
|---|---|
| Location | Nyathi village, Ngobozana, Lusikisiki, Eastern Cape, South Africa |
| Date | September 28, 2024 |
| Target | Women[1] |
Attack type | Spree shootings · mass shootings · massacre |
| Weapons | High-caliber firearms |
| Deaths | 18 |
| Injured | 5[2] |
| Motive | Unknown |
| Accused | 8 |
The 2024 Lusikisiki shootings occurred on September 28, 2024 outside of two houses in the town of Lusikisiki in Eastern Cape, South Africa. 18 people were killed and 5 others were injured.
Lusikisiki is a town in the Ingquza Hill Local Municipality in Eastern Cape, South Africa
Crime in Lusikisiki such as robbery and rape is common. In 2021, Lusikisiki ranked 1 in South Africa in terms of the national crime rate.[3]
Shootings
Aftermath
| 2024 Godini shooting | |
|---|---|
| Location | Godini village, Qumbu, Eastern Cape, South Africa |
| Date | October 6, 2024 ~22:45 (South Africa Standard Time GMT +2) |
| Target | Community Policing Forum patrollers |
Attack type | Mass shooting |
| Weapons | Rifles and handguns |
| Deaths | 6 |
| Injured | 4 |
| Perpetrators | Unknown |
No. of participants | 8 |
| Motive | Unknown |
On the day of the memorial service for the victims on October 6, eight unidentified gunmen armed with rifles and handguns opened fire on a group of Community Policing Forum community patrollers, killing six people and injuring four others. The suspects are still at large.[6]
Arrests
The first suspect was detained on October 3, 2024.[7] Three suspects were arrested on October 6.[8]
On October 9, prosecutors charged 45-year-old Siphosoxolo Myekethe with 18 counts of murder and one count possession of an unlicenced firearm, an AK-47 automatic assault rifle in connection with the shooting, but did not announce Myekethe's motive or connection to the victims.[9][10]
On October 15, three other suspects linked to the shooting, 31-year-old Bonga Hintsa, 25-year-old Aphiwe Ndende and 33-year-old Lwando Anthony Abi were arrested.[11]
The other arrested suspects are 38-year-old Zenande Paya, 36-year-old Mawethu Nomdlembu who were arrested on October 17 and 46-year-old Mzukisi Ndamase who was arrested on October 31.[12]
Gun recovery
On October 17, four high-caliber firearms, three AK-47 automatic rifles and a .243 Steyr Mannlicher rifle were recovered by police.[13]
Victims
The victims consisted of fifteen women and three men. Fifteen women and two men died in the shooting, while a critically injured man died in hospital two days after the shooting on September 29.[14]
The victims were identified as:
| # | Name (s) and Surname (s) | Age (s) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mary Sinqina | 63 |
| 2 | Thobile Sinqina | 37 |
| 3 | Samantha Sinqina | 26 |
| 4 | Nancy Sinqina-Mhatu | 59 |
| 5 | Anita Dimpo Mhatu | 30 |
| 6 | Athini Talent Mhatu | 25 |
| 7 | Thabiso Smomoza Mhatu | 14 |
| 8 | Mathembisile Sinqina-Mayekiso | 64 |
| 9 | Mandisa Dlokweni | 37 |
| 10 | Nonkanyiso Dukuza | 21 |
| 11 | Nombuliso Dukuza | 34 |
| 12 | Nobelungu France | 46 |
| 13 | Ruth King | 21 |
| 14 | Lungiswa Gawulekapa | 51 |
| 15 | Thandeka Mhlawulivela | 46 |
| 16 | Tamara Vimba | 40 |
| 17 | Sigobodo Gxobela | 59 |
| 18 | Nomazwi Ndleleni | 59 |
A mass memorial for the victims was held on October 5, 2024.[15]