JFK gang members convicted for murder of rival gang member

Three gang members belonging to the Junky Funky Kids, a gang that has been mostly terrorising parts of Steenberg, has been convicted after they fatally shot a member of the Flakka gang who was the nephew of one of the shooters.

The court convicted Shakoor Gaffoor, Riedewan Cedras and Grandall Solomons for the murder of Achmat Gaffoor, nephew of Shakoor Gaffoor, for three counts of illegal possession of firearms and a count of illegal possession of ammunition.

The accused initially faced nine charges including contravention of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act and three counts of attempted murder.

PICTURE: Pixabay

In October 2020, the deceased and his friend, Eathan Schoeman, were on the corner of St Blaise Street and St Barnard Street, Steenberg, asking passers-by for coins to buy dagga.

‘’They saw a grey hatchback with a driver and three passengers in the back seat passing by. Half an hour later, it returned with a passenger in the front seat. Schoeman testified that he felt uneasy when he saw the vehicle the second time. it stopped in front of them,’’ said Eric Ntabazalila, National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson in the Western Cape.

‘’The armed passengers, Gaffoor, Cedras and Solomons alighted, and he heard “hier is julle pappas” and he and the deceased started running in different directions. They started shooting at them. He managed to run away but later returned and found his friend fatally shot,’’ he added.

Responding to Adv Luzaan Williams who led him during his evidence in chief, Schoeman confirmed that Gaffoor, Cedras and Solomons are members of the Junky Funky Kids (JFKs) gang which operates in Hill View, Cafda, Sea Winds, Lavender Hill in Steenberg. He and his friends are members of the Flakka gang and the two gang groups are in a territorial war. Any gang member who sets foot in a rival gang area would be shot dead.

‘’Although the incident happened early in the morning, witnessed by people, and was caught on CCTV, the accused pleaded not guilty and tendered a plea explanation in terms of section 115 of the Criminal Procedure Act, 51 of 1977. Gaffoor denied being in the area when the shooting occurred and became aware of the incident when a friend informed him of the shooting. He spent the weekend with his parents in Melkbosstrand. He returned on Sunday.’’

‘’Cedras’ alibi was that he was with his mother in Grabouw on the day and time of the shooting. Solomons told the court that he was with his girlfriend, Amanda Jacobs, together with his mother Lucy-Ann Solomons and his father Charles. To prove her case, Adv Williams called witnesses including the mother and aunt of the deceased who are sisters of the accused one, eyewitnesses, police officers, medical personnel, and the CCTV footage.’’

In her closing arguments, Adv Williams said there was direct eyewitness evidence implicating all the accused and evidence from witnesses who viewed video footage.

The evidence reveals that the perpetrators acted in a manner indicative of a prior agreement. The deceased and the Flakka gang were the designated targets and each of the perpetrators understood their roles. The evidence reveals that all the perpetrators had firearms and were shooting at the deceased and the court should find them guilty of the unlawful possession of firearms. The state evidence is overwhelmingly sufficient to satisfy the court beyond any reasonable doubt that the State has established the guilt of all three accused on all counts.

The court convicted them, and sentencing proceedings will resume on 7 August 2024 with the tabling of the pre-sentencing report.

All accused will remain in custody including Gaffoor who was out on bail before the conviction.

 

Done By: Mitchum George