Foreign-owned shops in Gauteng have again come under attack, this time in Jeppestown, in the Johannesburg CBD on Sunday morning.
Four people have been arrested by the police for allegedly looting foreign-owned shops. Police Spokesperson Mavela Masondo says criminals went on the rampage and started looting shops after a building caught fire in the CBD.
Masondo says the fire claimed the lives of three people.
“Three people died as a result of the fire. Soon after that some of the people started to attack the shops and began to loot. Since it was early in the morning, most of the shops were still closed. So they broke into those shops and started to loot.”
Shop owners scrambled to clear out their stores.
SABC crew was prevented from filming when they arrived at the scene and advised to leave the area.
There have been several reports of sporadic attacks on foreign-owned shops throughout Gauteng.
The latest wave of looting comes just a month after police raided shops in the CBD for allegedly selling counterfeit goods.
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