Two dead, a shoot-out and a missing monkey - what's going on in Slovoville?

Police came under gunfire on Wednesday while conducting an operation to find murder suspects in Slovoville outside Soweto. 

Police spokesperson Capt Mavela Masondo said the gunfire came from a group of about 20 suspected zama zamas - illegal miners - who have allegedly been terrorising the community in Soweto. 

It all started when police were called to Slovoville last Saturday by residents who had found two dead bodies lying out in the open.

“Police went to the scene and saw that the men had been killed with sharp objects [stabbed].

“We went and checked with the community nearby but nobody wanted to speak to us. People were scared.”

Two murder dockets were opened. 

Masondo said police and members of the Joburg Metro Police Department went back to the area on Wednesday to investigate the murders further. 

“We just went searching, asking residents. But when we got near a certain section [of Slovoville] we took fire.”

He said the team had no idea what they were walking into. 

A shoot-out ensued and four men were arrested and are being held at Dobsonville police station.

When police entered the compound they found ammunition and a live vervet monkey.

JMPD said in a statement on Thursday that the animal was used for “rituals”.

“People are scared to give information but from the information we received it appears that there are two groups of illegal miners fighting over territory. We are still investigating [these allegations].”

He said the dead men had not yet been identified and that police are appealing to the community for more information. 

In the photo shown on the JMPD social media, the monkey appeared to have been tethered with a rope. 

“We called the SPCA,” Masondo said. “But they came very late, and when they did we couldn't find the monkey any more.”

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