R21 Road Shooting Prompts Murder and Attempted Murder Probe Near O.R. Tambo
Police have launched a murder and attempted murder investigation following a fatal shooting on the R21 highway towards O.R. Tambo International Airport on Monday evening, 5 October 2026.
The incident, which occurred during a roadside breakdown assistance, left one person dead and another hospitalised with gunshot wounds.
According to preliminary police reports, the incident began when the driver of a Fiat experienced a mechanical breakdown on the R21.
The driver contacted a friend for emergency assistance.
The friend arrived at the scene shortly after, accompanied by two other individuals. As the group was attending to the disabled vehicle, unidentified assailants opened fire on them.
In a desperate bid to evade the gunfire, the driver attempted to speed away but lost control of the vehicle. The car crashed heavily into a concrete jersey barrier on the side of the highway.
Emergency services arrived at the scene, where the driver was found to have sustained fatal injuries and was declared dead.
The occupants of the vehicle suffered varying fates during the ambush: the driver sustained fatal injuries and died at the scene, one passenger suffered a gunshot wound and was rushed to a nearby hospital for urgent medical attention and the third occupant managed to flee the gunfire and escaped the ordeal physically unharmed.
The motive behind the targeted shooting remains entirely unknown. High-density highway patrols and detectives are currently combing the area for evidence.
No arrests have been made at this stage. Police are appealing to anyone who may have witnessed the incident, or who has relevant dashcam footage from the R21 near the airport on Monday night, to come forward.
Investigations are ongoing to establish the exact circumstances and track down the perpetrators.
