The house of an alleged American gang leader in Salvia Street, Lentegeur, was petrol bombed during the early hours of Saturday March 8. No arrests have been made.
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A petrol bomb was hurled at the house of an alleged American gang leader in Salvia Street, Lentegeur, just after midnight on Saturday, March 8.
According to Jermaine Carelse, spokesperson for the City’s Fire and Rescue Service, the house was occupied when it was set alight. There were no injuries or damages to the adjacent properties, he said.
"The City’s Fire and Rescue Service received the call after midnight at 12.04am. The fire was extinguished at 12.48am. Two rooms were totally destroyed and a section of the ceiling damaged. A total of 14 persons were displaced," said Mr Carelse.
Lentegeur police spokesperson, Constable Navon van Houten, said police suspect the incident is gang-related.
"We cannot confirm who is responsible for the bombing. Although there is video footage circulating on social media. People are scared to talk to the police," Constable Van Houten said.
The bombing follows the alleged gang-related killing of another man in Lentegeur on Friday March 7 and a spate of shootings in an apparent gang war between the Fancy Boys and American gangs that flared up since the start of the year ("Escalating gang violence claims two lives", Plainsman, March 5; "Residents plea for end to gang violence", Plainsman, January 21; "Community march against gang shootings", Plainsman, January 17; "Gang turf war leaves 7 dead, 5 injured", Plainsman, January 14; and "Girl, 6, injured, 4 dead in 5 days of gang shootings", Plainsman, January 13).
In a bid to gain the trust of the community, Lentegeur police chief, Colonel Umavathie Rameshwarnath, has urged residents to contact her personally on 082 469 1309 should they have any information on the recent crimes in the area.
Michael Jacobs, Lentegeur community police forum chairperson, said the forum has noted, with concern, this weekend's bombing in Salvia Street.
Cautioning residents against engaging in criminal acts, Mr Jacobs said the community is traumatised by the ongoing gang war.
"The community is traumatised and it is very difficult to just go in and engage with some residents because you will find that certain sections of the community are siding with the Fancy Boys while another section is siding with the Americans.
"This presents a number of challenges due to the fact that the community takes the police as being corrupt. The station commander Colonel Ramesh has taken a bold step to give her personal number for people to come forward with information.
"Despite the concerns of corruption, there are a number of good police officers. As the CPF, we will work with them and other law enforcement agencies to find a positive outcome," he said.