Westbury mass shooting: Grandmother of two injured teens receives death threats

“They say I’m next.” Those are the chilling words of a 70-year-old grandmother from Westbury, whose two grandchildren were injured during the mass shooting, saying that she’s living in fear after alleged gang members threatened her life.

The mass shooting, which claimed the lives of two teenagers, took place around 1pm on Tuesday on Croesus Street. It is reported that four suspects, three of whom were armed, opened fire without warning on a group of seven teens.

“I’m in shock. I’m still traumatised by what happened,” 70-year-old grandmother Maureen Davis, told the media at the scene on Wednesday. 

“They are even threatening me on Facebook, saying I’m next. They’re coming back, and I will be next today.”

According to her, the shooters are known members of the ‘Fast Guns’ gang and have been labelling the victims as part of a rival group.

“They call them Varados because the shooters are from the Fast Guns gang, and they label those children as being part of the Varado gang just because they’re friends with boys from that group,” she said. 

“I’ve never seen any of those children carrying guns or acting like gangsters.”

The grandmother described the gunmen as a regular presence in the area.

“They are always sitting outside. Even when the pastor walks past, you will see them sitting there, smoking or gambling on the stoep.”

She questioned the motive behind the attack.

“What do they want from these children? There’s a big guy behind all this. He’s the one organising these things. Every weekend when they see my grandchildren dressed nicely, maybe that’s the problem. I just don’t know.”

Earlier, IOL News reported that an 18-year-old survivor who was shot in the leg and ear during the incident recounted the harrowing moment he and his friends were attacked.

“We were just sitting on the veranda, joking and chatting. Then we saw people coming into the yard, and they just started shooting. We lay flat on the ground.”

“I was shot in my ear and twice in my leg,” he continued.

“My friend saw I was hit in the ear and lay on top of me to protect me. They shot him dead. They kept shooting until their magazines were empty.”

The victims who died in the shooting have been identified as 18-year-old Tigan du Plessis and 17-year-old Diegan Ryters.

According to police, seven teenagers aged between 13 and 19 were approached on foot by four suspects. 

Gunfire erupted, killing two at the scene. The other five were taken to hospital.

The survivor, who is recovering, said he will return to hospital on Monday to have a bullet removed from his ear.

“This is not the first time this house has been attacked… The first time was in July. They shot the boy who lives here in the leg. He was in hospital for two weeks. Now they came back and shot seven of us.”

He claimed the same group was behind both incidents, allegedly sent by an older gang leader.

“This is a big guy. He’s the boss of the Fast Guns. He sent the younger boys to shoot us because he doesn’t like us. I think he’s maybe 38 or 39,” the teen said.

He added that he knows the identity of the shooters.

“Yes, we know all the shooters. One of them is standing over there by the brick house,” he said, pointing toward a nearby street.

When asked whether he feared for his life, he said, “Yes, of course I fear for my life. This place is too dangerous. There’s no mercy here anymore.”

He said the motive for the shooting was jealousy. 

“It's jealousy over name-brand clothes. Our parents spoil us. I won’t lie - we were spoiled brats. That’s why they don’t like us.”

Meanwhile, the grandmother said she had heard that three of the four alleged gunmen were arrested, but could not confirm it.

“We have four names. I believe three of them are arrested. I don’t know if it’s true,” she said.

Police confirmed they are aware of the identities of the suspects and are continuing their investigation.

simon.majadibodu@iol.co.za

IOL News