Central SA
Police investigate mass shooting, carjacking in Meyerton─── ZENANDE MPAME 12:49 Wed, 04 Feb 2026
Gauteng police are investigating six counts of murder as well as attempted murder, carjacking, and possession of a hijacked vehicle after a shooting in Meyerton.
Three suspects will appear in the local magistrate’s court soon after six people were killed when a minibus travelling from Johannesburg to Lesotho was attacked on Tuesday (3/2). The shooting happened on the R59 near Meyerton, leaving 18 others injured.
The suspects, driving a hijacked Nissan Juke, ambushed a bus travelling from Johannesburg to Lesotho and opened fire on the passengers and the driver, causing the bus to overturn. The suspects hijacked a motor vehicle on Johan le Roux Road and fled, but were tracked down and arrested at Valley Settlement, Klip River.
The Nissan used by the suspects was reportedly stolen at eMalahleni in September 2025.
“The gunmen opened fire before fleeing the scene and hijacking another vehicle,” said Gauteng deputy police commissioner Fred Kekana. “The driver of the minibus managed to push the suspects off the road, distracting them.
“The shooters then hijacked a vehicle in the vicinity. Members of the K9 unit, in unmarked vehicles, who were driving past where the shooting occurred, gave chase, and three suspects were (eventually) arrested.”
Police have opened six counts of murder, 18 counts of attempted murder, as well as counts of hijacking and possession of a hijacked vehicle. Police have urged anyone with information about the incident to come forward to assist with the investigation, he said.
The road was brought to a standstill because of the shooting. Photo supplied
Emergency services attended to the injured and transported them to nearby hospitals. In total, six people, four females and two males, lost their lives in the incident.
“Drones and choppers were mobilised, and we managed to apprehend two suspects immediately, right there and then,” said Kekana. “At a later stage, when we deployed our biological and explosive detection dogs, we managed to arrest the third suspect.
“All the victims of the shooting are Lesotho nationals. The motive for the shooting is unclear.”
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