Five illegal miners found dead in South Africa

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The bodies of five suspected illegal miners have been found at a mine dump in Benoni, east of Johannesburg, police said on Wednesday. Ghana-Illegal-Miners-Galamsey-Workers-300x200
The illegal miners were believed to be killed by a rival group last week, police spokesperson Katlego Mogale said.
Police found their bodies after being alerted by another miner who managed to escape, he said.
“Thus far only five bodies have been discovered. At this stage no suspect has been arrested. Cases of murder have been opened,” Mogale said.
A TV footage by the South African Broadcasting Corporation showed the scene where bullet cartridges were found scattered, a clear sign that a gun battle ensued.
An investigation has been launched to determine the cause for the deaths of the miners.
Clashes between rival illegal miners are not uncommon in Benoni, a hot spot of illegal mining. In February this year, five illegal miners were shot dead by rival counterparts in Benoni.
South Africa’s disused shafts are a draw card for gold diggers from neighboring Mozambique, Lesotho and Zimbabwe.
The South African Chamber of Mines estimates that illegal mining costs South Africa 5.6 billion rand (about 466 million U.S. dollars) in lost revenue every year. Enditem

Source: Xinhua

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