‘Shoot to kill’: Resident says it’s time to ‘end the mayhem’ as cops tackle illegal miners in Riverlea

• A Zamimpilo informal settlement resident in Johannesburg says police must act decisively when dealing with heavily armed illegal miners.
• The woman urged police to “shoot to kill”.
• She said shacks were riddled with bullet holes from the illegal miners’ guns. 

Fed up with illegal miners, an elderly resident of the Zamimpilo informal settlement next to Riverlea, Johannesburg, urged police to “shoot to kill” them and said authorities were “too lenient”.

The woman, who did not want to be identified for safety reasons, spoke as the police’s Specialised Task Force, National Intervention Unit, Tactical Response Team, and Tactical Vision private security guard combed the area in search of armed illegal miners.

Although holes close to Main Reef Road, which illegal miners used to go underground, were closed on Wednesday, they were open again on Thursday morning.

By 19:00, police waited at strategic spots around the holes for the illegal miners to emerge from them.

“I saw them this morning going underground. They have undermined this country. It was a large group of them [who] went underground. Their bosses, carrying long guns, escorted them. As the police arrived around 16:00, their observers signalled to the armed men to warn those underground not to come out,” the woman said.

READ | Zama zamas reopen holes closed by cops near Riverlea as over 100 arrests made

But she had had enough.

“The police must shoot to kill. This is the time to end this mayhem. They have terrorised us for too long. Our hope is for the police to end this. The illegal miners carry long guns. They shoot randomly in the air. They are so bold that they kill each other in public,” she said.

A member of the Special Task Force in Zamimpilo informal settlement.

News24 Ntwaagae Seleka/News24

There wasn’t a day that passed without illegal miners placing a body or more near the road, she added.

“We are tired. We have had enough of this madness. We vacate our shacks at night, fearing their bullets. Our shacks are riddled with their bullets. This place is an illegal mining hub. They conduct it everywhere. They are not afraid of anyone.

“I blame our local police for all this. They have been too lenient on illegal miners for too long. Langlaagte police station has failed us.

“Their officers know who the kingpins are and those who escort zama zamas in and out of their holes. Had this been acted upon on time, we would live as freely as we did before they arrived here.

“The police must do what they are trained to do. Our lives are in their hands,” she continued before quickly returning to her shack, afraid that someone might see her speaking to News24.

Between Tuesday and Thursday afternoon, police arrested more than 100 people for various crimes in the area, including illegal mining and immigration-related offences.

News24 understands that the alleged masterminds behind the illegal mining in Zamimpilo fled when the specialised units arrived, after Minister Bheki Cele promised residents on Monday that action would be taken.

READ | Warring zama zamas are terrorising Riverlea. Residents say police just don’t have the firepower

Police spokesperson Brigadier Brenda Muridili said they were conducting a specialised operation augmented by private security guards.

“We targeted shacks in Zamimpilo and later crossed the road (Main Reef) where they operated. There was a shootout on Wednesday evening. Police officers who patrolled the area in the morning made us aware that one or two holes that were closed on Wednesday had been reopened.

“We have arrested over 100 people. Our specialised units will be here for some time. They operate in shifts. At times, they won’t be seen by the community. They operate covertly with Crime Intelligence collecting key information on the ground. Others will be in the bushes where illegal miners operate,” Muridili said.

She added that Ekurhuleni, West Rand and Johannesburg were infested with illegal miners.

“It is rife in all these three districts. When we disrupt one district, they move to another. District commanders are ready and conducting simultaneous operations to nab those who move from other areas, including this one.

“In the West Rand district, an intelligence operation led to the arrest of four Basotho nationals with an AK-47, four pistols and many rounds of live ammunition on Wednesday afternoon,” Muridili said.

Tactical Vision director Yaseen Theba said they worked with the police the operations.

They also relay information from the community to the police commanders, he said.