South African police investigate death of 15 illegal miners

South African Police are investigating the death of 15 suspected illegal miners killed in clashes this week.

It is understood that the group are from rival gangs who were working underground to mine gold in abandoned shafts.

Several Police units and other law enforcement officers have been deployed to the area, east of Johannesburg to monitor the situation. 

Police say the victims were shot dead using different calibers of guns.

The authorities fear that the body count of the illegal miners will increase as they continue to work on the scene.

Johannesburg is dotted with disused mine shafts, which attract men from around the region, including Lesotho, Mozambique and Zimbabwe, with the promise of discovering remaining gold deposits.


BBC