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.
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PICTURE: PixabayIn 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
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