Angry taxi drivers fight young gangsters

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Gangs terrorising communities in Moletjie, outside Polokwane, faced the fury of local taxi operators this week. The rival gangs, which have operating in Makgofe, Deiring, Mmotong-wa-Perekisi, Spook Park and Bloodriver, have recently extended their activities into the taxi industry. But unlike villagers, who often fear any form of retaliation, the taxi operators have fought back against the group of young gangsters who have been walking around freely wielding machetes, hacking their victims to death. The gangs fought among themselves when they started operating early this year. But recently they have taken to robbing residents of their belongings. Some of the thugs, who include girls, are as young as 14.

The Mazulu and Mateki gangs, with more than 80 members each, are the main rival groups. However, there are other smaller groups not affiliated with them. Villagers say they disrupt weddings and parties.

Four people have been killed in the area since April.

All were hacked with butchers’ knives and machetes. The latest victim, Walter Ndlovu, 20, was stabbed to death in a party on October 30 by alleged gangsters.

Police could not confirm if Ndlovu had been a gangster.

“We have arrested Tebogo Dikgale, 20, and Philemon Mothomogolo, 19, for his murder, but they are out on bail,” said Seshego police spokesman, Mothemane Malefo.

Early this week, suspected gangsters allegedly robbed a taxi driver of R350, while other gang members reportedly fondled a pregnant woman and forcibly kissed her inside a taxi.

These incidents prompted taxi operators to seek out the gangsters, capturing some of gangs’ alleged members on Tuesday and assaulting them with pick handles.

“Some of them were badly injured,” said Malefo, adding that police had opened five cases of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm against taxi operators. “The problem is that the taxi operators did not report the complaints to the police, and then they went on to take the law into their own hands.”

But the taxi operators are not about to back off.

On Thursday, a few vowed to continue with their crackdown against the suspected gangs until they broke the network.

“We are tired of these boys. Sometimes they refuse to pay taxi fares and threaten to assault our members,” said one angry operator.

An employee in the taxi industry said the gangs had made it known that they would begin targeting taxi operators’ families, whom they plan to attack as a form of retaliation.

“We know they threatened to attack our families, but we are ready for them,” said a queue marshal at the Indian Centre Taxi Rank in Polokwane.

Officials of the Moletjie Taxi Association had been locked in a meeting until late Thursday and could not be reached for comment.

The affected communities have organised a protest march to the Seshego police station today to highlight the gang problem. - The Star