Westbury gang leader dies in hail of bullets

The leader of a notorious Westbury gang died after being shot multiple times on Tuesday morning.

The shooting took place near a shopping centre in 14th Avenue, Roodepoort. 

“The victim was leaving the gym when accosted by two unknown coloured men. They fired several shots at the victim and he was declared dead on the scene,” Gauteng police spokesperson Col Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi said.

“The motive of the shooting is unknown at this stage and no suspects have been arrested as yet.”

Bishop Dulton Adams, a member of the Gauteng legislature and a community leader in Westbury, confirmed the victim was a well-known gang leader, saying he had received verification from a senior police officer in his constituency. 

“I don't know what transpired but it seems like it is an assassination,” he said.

An Eldorado Park community member said initial reports indicated he had been shot five times. 

The name of the victim is known to TimesLIVE but is being withheld pending verification.

Westbury has endured decades of gangsterism, with only brief periods of truce signed between warring factions involved in drug dealing, protection rackets, the stolen vehicle “chop shop” trade and control over minibus taxi routes, according to a Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime report. The latest bout of violence began between two rival leaders in 2013 or 2014.

In February this year, Fast Guns leader Keenan Ebrahim was shot dead while driving in Constantia Kloof, plunging the area into fear as gun-toting youths ran amok.

In September W/O Dalmain Morris, an anti-gang unit policeman, was shot dead in a drive-by shooting.

TimesLIVE