Less than a day after a deadly shooting at Solo Restaurant in Sandton, workers were seen cleaning the crime scene, raising concerns over potential evidence tampering while police investigations remain ongoing.
Cleaners mop blood off Solo Restaurant floor hours after mass shooting
The late-night shooting, which took place on Thursday at around 23:00, left three people dead and four others injured at the popular Sandton venue.
Eyewitnesses claim the incident started when a man and his bodyguards attempted to enter the restaurant while armed, despite its strict no-firearms policy.
A confrontation with security quickly escalated into gunfire, leaving the armed man and his two bodyguards dead. Among the injured were two patrons, a security guard, and a Community Policing Forum (CPF) member who was on patrol at the time.
Despite the scale of the incident, cleaners were filmed just hours later, mopping blood from the floor and appearing to clear the restaurant of any visible signs of the attack.
Video footage of the clean-up has since gone viral, with many questioning whether police had completed forensic work at the crime scene before the cleaning began.
SAPS has yet to confirm whether the restaurant was given clearance to begin sanitising the area or if management took independent action in preparation for reopening.
Requests for comment from both SAPS and Solo Restaurant remain unanswered at the time of publication.
What we know about the shooting so far
Police spokesperson Brigadier Brenda Muridili confirmed that four firearms were recovered at the scene, including two AK-47 rifles and two handguns.
The case is now being investigated by SAPS’s Serious and Violent Crimes Unit, alongside the Murder and Robbery Division.
Preliminary reports indicate that the man at the centre of the shooting had a history of violent altercations and had been arrested in 2024 for another shooting in Sandton.
However, further details on that case have not yet been made public.
Law enforcement officials have made no arrests in connection with the shooting, and the motive behind the attack remains unclear.
