11 arrested after brawl between rival taxi associations in Cape Town

Police in Cape Town have arrested 11 taxi drivers following a brawl between members of rival taxi associations. The suspects were involved in throwing bricks at one another at a taxi rank in Pinelands. Police spokesperson Ndakhe Gwala reported that the incident occurred on Monday. Last week, the Cape Amalgamated Taxi Association (CATA) and the Cape Organisation for the Democratic Taxi Association (CODETA) had pledged to cooperate with authorities to address their disputes.

They had convened with stakeholders from the provincial Mobility department, the City of Cape Town, and SANTACO after a rise in taxi-related violence resulted in several deaths over recent weeks. Additional meetings are scheduled for this week. Gwala stated that the Public Order Police were deployed to Pinelands following the brick-throwing incident at the taxi rank.

Eleven suspects were charged with public violence and intimidation. One of the arrested individuals was found to have a firearm and was additionally charged with violating a court order.