Law Society calls for inquiry into Wynberg court shooting

Entrance of Wynberg Magistrate’s Court in Cape Town on October 29, 2020.

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The Law Society of South Africa (LSSA) is calling for a full inquiry into Tuesday’s fatal shooting inside the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court in Cape Town.

A man believed to be a taxi owner was gunned down.

The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in the Western Cape says the 50-year-old was an accused in a criminal case.

Police have launched a manhunt for the suspect.

LSSA’s Criminal Law Committee Chairperson William Booth says security at courts across the country has to be revamped.

Booth says, “The security at the court is, in my view, a huge problem. Some of the scanning devices were not operational and this is not only at Wynberg but it happens at many other courts throughout South Africa.”

“The CCTV cameras that were in some of the passages that could have been used to capture the perpetrators were not working. I appeared in the regional court today (Wednesday) and a number of Magistrates who I spoke to were traumatised, prosecutors as well and it is something that needs to be seriously addressed.”