Cape Town – Shocking video footage of apparent gangsters turning on and then shooting at police in Hanover Park has emerged in an incident in which a teen was killed and officers injured.

This incident has played out as gang violence seems to be growing in the Western Cape.

Western Cape Police spokesperson Andrè Traut said community members retaliated when an unrelated suspect was arrested during the arrest of a suspect accused of killing an 18-year-old in Erie Court, Hanover Park, on Tuesday morning. 

Footage shows officers running away as men approach them.

Traut said one officer was bitten and another hit with a stone during the altercation. Both officers have been admitted to hospital for treatment.

The motive behind the community’s retaliation is unknown.

Gang violence has recently surged in various areas around Cape Town. Several children have been caught up in the crossfire.

On September 9, Aqeel Davids, 9, was caught in apparent gang crossfire in his Ocean View home. He was wounded and later died in hospital.

READ: South Africa’s police gun smuggling shame

Barely a month before that, on August 3, a 7-year-old boy, Ezra Daniels, was shot dead in Grassy Park.

A national anti-gang strategy is on the cards.

The origin of guns used by gangsters is already the focus of a mammoth countrywide firearms smuggling investigation, headed by the Hawks.

After a total of 33 firearms were stolen from two police stations in Cape Town about a month ago – thefts which Police Minister Fikile Mbalula said were carried out with the help of police – an audit is to be done on the guns at all stations in the Western Cape.