A brutal mass shooting at an illegal tavern inside a Saulsville, Pretoria, hostel has claimed 12 lives and put a spotlight on the violent outbreaks linked to illicit shebeens. Authorities are hunting a number of suspects as the City intensifies crackdowns on these crime-riddled establishments. The death toll from the Saulsville, Pretoria, mass shooting has risen to 12.
On 6 December 2025, three unknown gunmen stormed an illegal tavern inside a hostel in the Atteridgeville, Pretoria township and opened fire. Twelve people, including three children, were killed while 13 others were injured and taken to Kalafong Hospital. The attack occurred at about 4am, as the gunmen fired indiscriminately.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) was only alerted at 6am. SAPS spokesperson Athlenda Mathe confirmed that the police have registered 12 counts of murder and 14 of attempted murder. The youngest victim was the three-year-old child of the illegal shebeen’s owner, and the other two minors were 12 and 16.
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Ten people died at the scene and others succumbed to their injuries in hospital. The motive remains unclear, while authorities are searching for at least three male suspects. Mathe said illegal shebeens pose a major challenge for the police, since most violent incidents occur in these unlicensed liquor premises, where confrontations and misunderstandings often lead to deadly fights.
“These unlicensed liquor premises are posing a challenge for us because that is where most of these incidents happen, where people are being killed. There’s confrontations, there’s misunderstandings that lead to people fighting and ultimately some losing their lives. When you look at our stats between April and September, we’ve shut down 11,975 of these unlicensed premises,” she said.
Mathe said the motive for the shooting was still under investigation. “We are not aware yet what could have been the motive, but our detectives are on the ground. We are piecing together information.
We’ve taken several statements. We are also working with the community and several witnesses to tell us what exactly happened and to give us a picture of who we might be looking for,” she said. The City of Tshwane’s mayoral committee member for community safety, Hannes Coetzee, said illegal taverns continue to create unsafe conditions in communities and are a significant driver of crime and disorder.
He was at the scene on Saturday morning and in an afternoon statement expressed the City’s “deep sorrow”, offering condolences to residents, especially the families of the children who lost their lives. “This is a painful moment for the Saulsville community and for Tshwane as a whole,” he said, adding that the City was outraged by the “senseless act of violence”. Coetzee said Operation Shanela, which is led by the police and supported by the Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD), is prioritising these types of illegal operations.
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