WHILE a 5-year-old boy fights for his life his in hospital, his distraught uncle recounted how he carried the bleeding child there, praying that it wasn’t too late after he had been shot in the head in a drive-by shooting while he was playing.
The boy, 5, was taken into surgery yesterday after he was shot in Manenberg during a suspected gang-related drive-by shooting earlier which claimed the life of 17-year-old Berto Nathan Mitas.
The Grade R pupil left his home shortly before 9am, promising his uncle he would play in sight.
Minutes later relatives heard gunshots ringing outside after a grey VW Golf with a black roof drove past and shots were fired from the vehicle.
His uncle said he ran outside to Thames Avenue and rushed the wounded child to the nearby day hospital.
A few metres from where the child’s blood stained the street, Berto was declared dead at the scene.
The teen was struck as he was warning others about the shooters.
So common are shootings in the area that residents have become desensitised to the bloodshed.
Three hours after the incident, when Weekend Argus arrived in Manenberg, residents were sitting in their yards as if nothing had happened.
“(He) was playing where I could see him and it was not long after he went outside when I heard lots of gunshots,” the devastated uncle said.
“He was lying on the pavement. He was conscious, barely moving, his right side seemed paralysed.
“We took him to Heideveld Day Hospital, from where he was transferred to the Red Cross Hospital’s ICU.”
He told Weekend Argus the last update they had received from the child’s parents in hospital was that he had gone into theatre where the bullet had been removed.
Hospital spokesperson Danielle Cargnelutti said a patient matching the child’s description had been admitted and was receiving treatment.
His devastated grandmother was praying for his recovery.
“I sleep with one eye open because I don’t know when the gangsters will strike and we never know who they are going to shoot.
“I never thought this would happen to my family; this has left us devastated.
“I went to the hospital but I refused to see him in that condition; I want to think of him as the playful, jovial boy I know him to be,” she said.
Manenberg resident Jonathan Allie, 37, said he had been walking to Duinefontein Road when he saw a vehicle driving towards him and his friend, Berto.
“They started shooting and we ran; they didn’t stop until they shot Berto and the young boy.
“When I got to Berto, I found him inside the garage; he ran home when he heard the shots.
“I was told he was shot as he was telling people to take cover. He died on the scene.”
Allie described Berto as a quiet teenager.
“He was an introvert, he would only speak when spoken to; he would never tell you what he felt in his heart. He was a nice boy who was never a gangster. He did odd jobs to survive.”
Mayco member for Safety and Security JP Smith said seven shootings had been reported this weekend in the area.
“Since Friday night, seven incidents have been recorded in Manenberg on the Shotspotter alert system.
Smith said law enforcement officers managed to recover two firearms and made several arrests.
“Sadly, at this time, reports indicate that two victims sustained gunshot wounds, with one reported fatality.”
Police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg said the unknown suspects entered the road in a vehicle and started shooting.
“The 17-year-old boy was declared deceased on the scene by medical personnel, while the 5-year-old boy was taken to a medical facility in a critical condition.
“Manenberg police registered murder and attempted murder cases for investigation.”
The Manenberg community policing forum (CPF) visited the boy’s family to offer moral support yesterday afternoon.
The forum’s spokesperson, Pedro Visagie, said while the motive behind the killing was unclear, ongoing violence in the area continued to pose a threat to residents.
“Law enforcement, SAPS, CPF and neighbourhood watch members are devising a plan and measures to curb the violence.”
Visagie said power outages that have become a daily occurrence had exacerbated crime.
“Gangsters take advantage during load shedding, their activities increase when it is dark. The darkness has brought such a negative impact and has put pressure on the police station
to put more members on the ground to increase their visibility.”
Visagie believed that the community needed to take greater responsibility in ensuring there was peace in the area.
“We don’t get the co-operation of the community; they cover up because it’s their own kids involved and that is challenging and we need to re-look the structure of neighbourhood watch.
“We might have to look into street champions, people who are in charge of the road because neighbourhood watch members work during certain hours and gangsters can strike at any time. We need to create awareness among the neighbours to be more responsible towards safety.
“We need as much resources as we can possibly get; there is no quantifying how much of resources we need,” he said.
Anyone with information about this incident can contact Crime Stop on 08600 10111.
Weekend Argus