Meyerton Mass Shooting: Police Arrest Three Suspects After Six People Shot Dead Near R59
- Police arrested three suspects following a mass shooting on the R59 in Meyerton, south of Johannesburg
- The suspects opened fire on a minibus taxi travelling on the R59, leaving several dead and many others injured
- Deputy Provincial Police Commissioner, Major General Fred Kekana, confirmed that suspects also hijacked another vehicle
Source: Twitter
Byron Pillay, a Briefly News journalist, has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He spent 10 years working for the Northern Natal Courier before transitioning to online journalism.
GAUTENG – Two people have been arrested following a fatal shooting on the R59 in Meyerton, south of Johannesburg, on 3 February 2026.
The suspects were nabbed following the mass shooting, which left six people dead. Eighteen other people who sustained injuries during the shooting are currently receiving treatment in a hospital.
Emergency services are currently on scene, attending to the injured. There is also a heavy police presence in the area as investigations continue. Police confirmed that four females and two males were killed in the incident. All of them were Lesotho nationals.
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Victims were travelling in a minibus
Deputy Provincial Police Commissioner, Major General Fred Kekana, held a press briefing at the crime scene, where he confirmed that three people were arrested, not two as first reported.
He explained that the suspects were in a white Nissan Juke, driving behind a minibus that left Park Station in Johannesburg and was travelling to Lesotho.
The suspects then opened fire on the minibus unprovoked. The driver of the minibus tried to avoid the gunfire and attempted to push the Juke off the road.
“Fortunately, he managed to distract them. The Juke had to cross over a small bridge here, and those passengers who were shooting jumped out of their vehicle,” General Kekana said.
Source: Twitter
Suspects hijacked another vehicle to escape
General Kekana further explained that the suspects who jumped out of the vehicle then went up the bridge on foot, where they hijacked a Datsun GO.
South African Police Service (SAPS) K9 officers and Vehicle Crime Investigation Units, who were in the area in unmarked vehicles, came across the woman who had just been hijacked. She told officers what had happened and pointed out the car, leading to a high-speed chase.
The chase ended in the Kliprivier area, where the suspects crashed into a ditch.
“The three suspects jumped out, and later on, drones and helicopters were mobilised, and we managed to capture two suspects immediately, right there and then,” General Kekana said.
The third suspect was arrested at a later stage. Further investigation revealed that the Juke was stolen in September 2025.
Other stories about mass shootings in 2026
Briefly News reported that there have been several mass shootings this year across the country.
- Four people were killed in Germiston, Ekurhuleni, in a mass shooting on 17 January 2026.
- Eight people were shot dead in Philippi East, with police linking the attack to extortion-related violence in the Western Cape.
- Five people were killed in a shooting outside a tuckshop in the informal settlement of Jeffsville, Gauteng.
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Source: Briefly News
