Gauteng police are hot on the heels of community members who nabbed seven alleged criminals and burnt them alive in Diepsloot township.
On Friday night, the already fed up community couldn't take it any longer.
They went out in numbers, hunted down the thugs through the congested streets. When they found them they stoned them and burned them alive in two separate incidents.
Victims of the crimes committed by these thugs never got justice despite reporting numerous incidents to the police.
And now the police are hunting for the ring leaders of the mob justice that stoned and burned the seven men.
Gauteng provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General Elias Mawela condemned the incident
"It can't be right that people fight crime by committing another crime" he said.
Mawela said he has instructed the commander at Diepsloot police station to select a hard working team of police officials to track down those involved in the killings.
"We are assuring the families of the victims that the police will bring the hardworking officials to get the perpetrators of the violent crime that happened on Saturday," he said.
Mawela raised concerns that such incidents like these killings increase the already high murder rate in crime statistics.
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"Those who were part of the killing have their days numbered and we'll make sure we round them up," he said.
On Saturday night, one man known in the streets of Diepsloot as Absa was taken into custody by the police. He was suspected to be one of the people who were part of the killing of the seven people.
Absa was released from custody In less than an hour.
Some members were angry and started mobilising to go to the station to demand Absa's release. But soon, they received Absa's voice note which he sent to the community WhatsApp group.
Councillor Abraham Mabhuke said the victims were mostly Zimbabweans but there were South Africans as well.
"It is now emerging that one of the suspects burned on Saturday morning was a well-known South African trouble maker young man known on the street as Ma7," he said.
On Sunday, the community was calm again with high police visibility.
The community of Diepsloot has been protesting against crime in the area all year and even demanded President Cyril Ramaphosa to visit the township and witness their plight.
