Cullinan residents shot after protesting 10-year-old's assault, death

An unknown number of people were shot and injured in a protest in Cullinan, east of Pretoria, on Wednesday, Gauteng police said.

On Wednesday morning a white Isuzu bakkie was trying to get out of the area and the occupants and fired shots at the protesters, Captain Marissa van der Merwe said.

Van der Merwe said she did know how many people were shot. Paramedics took the injured to a nearby hospital. Police arrested a Pakistani man who was found in possession of a firearm.

The protest apparently started on Tuesday. Residents of Refilwe were angry after a foreign shop owner allegedly assaulted a 10-year-old child, who later died in hospital. The child was assaulted for apparently stealing sweets.

Locals then looted shops of foreigners and barricaded the roads.