There's no place to hide

Cape Town's newly installed gunshot locater in a Cape Flats gangland hot spot has recorded more than 200 shots in less than a month.

The city is piloting gunshot location technology from the US in Hanover Park in an attempt to curb gangsterism and the proliferation of illegal firearms.

Councillor Jean-Pierre Smith, the mayoral committee member for safety and security in the Cape Town council, said the technology involved the use of a device that was installed three weeks ago and that had recorded 240 gunshots in the area by Friday.

Smith said the device had helped in the recovery of two illegal firearms and the arrest of a murder and attempted murder suspect.

The device consists of audio sensors that allow the authorities to determine the location of a shooter to within half a metre.

Smith said both single and multiple shootings were detected, "several of which have been fatal".

"In one case you can clearly hear the voice of the shooter. You can hear him and his accomplices shouting to each other with all the expletives.

"There is forensic data available to the police that will aid them [in their investigations]".

Smith said suspected gangsters had been setting off fireworks to try to trick the device and possibly ambush the police officers responding to the alert.

"The bad news for them is that the system can distinguish between the sound of fireworks and firearms," said Smith.

He said the city was waiting for permission from the Civil Aviation Authority to use a drone aircraft whenever a gunshot was detected.

The drone would be used to take high resolution pictures that would be used in police investigations.

Smith said CCTV cameras were being installed that would be connected to the gunshot locater.

They would track in the direction of gunshots and film any car or person leaving the scene of the shooting.

Smith said the council would negotiate with the supplier to lower the cost of using the technology so that detectors and cameras could be installed in other crime hot spots.