Authorities in Gauteng are hunting for a heavily armed group following a deadly mass shooting at the Jumpers Informal Settlement in Cleveland that left 12 people dead and wounded at least nine others on the night of Tuesday, June 9, 2026.
The massacre unfolded at approximately 23:10 when the South African Police Service (SAPS) received reports of an active shooting in progress. Responding officers arrived to find a chaotic scene with multiple residents suffering from severe gunshot wounds, prompting an immediate dispatch of Emergency Medical Services to the area.
The death toll from the assault stands at 12. According to preliminary findings, eight adult men and three adult women were pronounced dead at the scene. A twelfth victim, an adult male, later died from his injuries after being rushed to a hospital. Emergency responders also evacuated a minimum of nine additional gunshot victims to various nearby medical facilities for urgent trauma care.
Investigators believe the attack was highly coordinated. Reports indicate that a gang of more than 10 gunmen was dropped off near a local petrol station in Cleveland by a white Toyota Quantum. The armed suspects allegedly split up, breaching the informal settlement through both of its entrances. They then moved through the community, opening fire on residents at multiple locations before fleeing the scene in the same white Quantum.
A massive, multi-disciplinary task team comprising provincial and district detectives, crime intelligence operatives, and forensic specialists has been deployed to track down the fleeing gunmen and process the crime scenes. The motive behind the brutal attack remains entirely unclear and is the primary focus of the ongoing investigation. No arrests have been made at this stage.