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Police Minister, Bheki Cele, wants an urgent probe into allegations by residents of Zandspruit in Johannesburg that local police were not responding to their distress calls.
This, after eight youngsters accused of terrorising the community were beaten and burnt to death at a sports field in the informal settlement on Wednesday.
Residents told the Minister during a visit on Saturday that they believe that this could have been avoided if police responded on time.
The community is served by Honeydew police.
Cele visited the area along with Gauteng MEC for Community Safety, Faith Mazibuko, following a meeting with the provincial police management about the gruesome killings and the resident's claims.
The Police Ministry said the meeting saw representatives of the local CPF and other recognised community safety structures, expressing their concerns about policing and safety.
“They also reported to the Police Minister and the provincial police team that the Honeydew police station, which also serves the Zandspruit area, provides poor service to the community,” said Ministry spokesperson, Lirandzu Themba.
She said Minister Cele has ordered an urgent probe into why the police response time was slow on the morning of the attacks and has called for heads to roll.
She said he would return to the area in less than a month’s time to provide feedback to the community on what has been done to improve the police station's performance and service delivery.
