Vrygrond ward councillor says gun violence has reached crisis point in the area
On Thursday, councillor Mandy Marr addressed a crime Imbizo in Vrygrond, a Cape Town suburb gripped by deadly gun violence in recent weeks
SAPS and community engagement in Vrygrond near Muizenberg on Thursday, 5 June 2025. Picture: Ntuthuzelo Nene/ EWN
CAPE TOWN - A ward councillor in Vrygrond near Muizenberg, in Cape Town, says gun violence in the area has reached a crisis point.
On Thursday, councillor Mandy Marr addressed a crime Imbizo in Vrygrond, a suburb gripped by deadly gun violence in recent weeks
The imbizo is aimed at building trust and strengthening partnerships between the community and the police, thereby combatting crime.
Western Cape police top brass is visiting Vrygrond to hear directly from community members how gun violence has turned their lives upside down.
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The community and police engagement in Vrygrond on Thursday comes just days after a police officer was shot and killed outside his home in broad daylight.
The surge in violence has been attributed to an extortion related war between local taxi associations and the Junky Funky Kids Gang operating in the area.
Marr says the violence is out of control and has called for more help from the police.
“We want to know what SAPS [South African Police Service] is doing in our gang-ravaged community at the moment, where extortion has never been like this before in Vrygrond, it’s never been like this before.”
Police officers attached to Operation Shanela have been deployed to the area to clamp down on crime.