Witness Recalls Heart-Wrenching Day Municipal Official Martha Mani Rantsofu Was Gunned Down

• Municipal official Martha Mani Rantsofu shot dead shortly after arriving at a tyre fitment centre
• A witness described the traumatic experience of fixing a tyre beside Rantsofu's body after the shooting
• Rantsofu's brother cleaned the blood after the shooting while the family struggles to understand the tragic circumstances

Justin Williams, a journalist at Briefly News since 2024, covers South Africa’s current affairs. Before joining Briefly News, he served as a writer and chief editor at Right for Education Africa’s South African chapter.

GAUTENG - An employee at a tyre fitment centre has described the moment a municipal official was shot dead shortly after arriving at the premises on 30 March 2026.

Fixing tyre while her body lay nearby

Martha Mani Rantsofu, an acting accountant at Emfuleni Local Municipality, was gunned down just minutes after reaching the centre, located near a police station. The employee, who asked not to be named, told TimesLive he had been assisting Rantsofu when the incident occurred. He said she arrived shortly after 16:00 and had not spent more than a few minutes at the site before the shooting. He said Rantsofu approached him for help with a punctured tyre and was still on her phone moments before the attack. He added that when the first gunshot was fired, he initially thought it was a tyre bursting, but realised it was gunfire as more shots followed.

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The employee said he had just stepped away from her when she was shot. He added that the tyre had not yet been fixed, but he later had to complete the repair and place it back into her vehicle while her body lay nearby. He described the experience as traumatic, saying he had to step over blood while working next to the vehicle. He indicated that he intended to seek counselling following the incident. It is believed that Rantsofu may have been followed to the centre, as the shooting happened shortly after her arrival.

Clean her blood from the floor

Rantsofu's brother said he had to clean her blood from the floor. It is alleged that the victim was in a legal battle with a property developer and had open an intimidation case against the developer. The brother said that he received a call at around 19:00 to go to a fast food outlet near the tyre fitment centre. He added that when he arrived at the scene he only saw her shoe and leg as her body was already covered.

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The brother said that he felt that his heart was ripped out. He added that he never imagined that something like this would happen to his sister. He believes that his sister's killer wanted to make that she was dead and that this tragic incident is hard for the family to process.

South Africans weigh in

Social media shared their opinions regarding the tragic incident.

Carl Fouche' Maritz said:

"So sorry lovely lady. You had your life snuffed out by evil. But the forces of good will win. You won't have perished in vain."

Kgomza Mck said:

"These events shows that she was actually followed."

Zanele Khena sadi:

"I’m struggling to get over how she died."

Siva Archary said:

"Must have uncovered some irregularities in the municipality."

Chinette Gallichan: Netizens demand case be handed over to PKTT

Briefly News also reported that South Africans have called for the case of slain lawyer Chinette Gallichan to be transferred to the Political Killings Task Team.

Gallichan was gunned down outside the offices of the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration in Johannesburg

Source: Briefly News