Suspects open fire on taxi driver, shooting him in the head
|Published
Durban — A taxi driver was shot in the head by unknown suspects while driving from his employer’s house in Verulam on Wednesday afternoon.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said Verulam police opened a case of attempted murder after a 32-year-old taxi driver was allegedly shot by unknown people on Wednesday.
Netshiunda said the victim sustained a gunshot wound to the head and was taken to hospital for medical attention.
“It is alleged that the driver was driving his taxi on Estuary Drive in Verulam when he was ambushed by four suspects who were driving a white vehicle. They reportedly opened fire before fleeing the scene in their gateway vehicle,” Netshiunda said.
Reaction Unit South Africa (Rusa) spokesperson Prem Balram said the driver was left seriously injured following the shooting.
Balram said Rusa officers arrived on the scene at approximately 7.19pm and discovered the man bleeding excessively from his injury.
Balram said the victim explained he was returning to his employer’s home in a white Toyota Quantum when a white Toyota Corolla (registration unknown) blocked his travel path.
The victim said he tried to reverse but one of the suspects fired a shot which penetrated the windscreen and struck him in the head. The minibus veered off the road and came to a stop in a dense bush. The gunmen then sped off in an unknown direction.
Meanwhile, in an unrelated incident, IOL reported that one person was arrested for shooting an Eastern Cape couple in their driveway in a taxi-related hit.
Eastern Cape police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu said the couple, aged 36 and 39, came under fire as they were entering the driveway of their home in Kerk Street, Fairview in Barkly East and survived the shooting incident.
“It is alleged just before 7pm, the couple arrived at their residence and as they pulled up to their gate, two males approached the vehicle and fired several shots at the driver’s side,” Naidu said.
“The male sustained multiple gunshot wounds while his wife sustained a bullet wound to her hip. They were taken to hospital for treatment.
“Two males were released while a third person, 36, has been charged with attempted murder,” Naidu said.
She said the motive is suspected to be taxi-related.
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