Cape Town - Just less than two weeks after 2-year-old Kayden Jeffries from Bishop Lavis was shot five times when he was caught in gangster crossfire, he has been discharged from Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital and is recovering at home.
Kayden was shot five times in the neck, shoulder, and chest when three men allegedly opened fire on a pair of men standing in front of his home where he was playing at Paulsberg Road. Kayden was with his mother and aunt when the incident happened.
The relieved parents said the family were happy at his “timely recovery” which they had been praying for.
Mother Kaylin, who related the details of the incident of the sunny afternoon of February 26, said: “This wasn’t supposed to happen. For us, it has been a norm that on weekends we sit outside the house, and when the shooting happened we were sitting outside as usual and it caught us off guard.
“However, Kayden is doing well, he is playing, laughing and doing most of the things he did before the shooting,” she said.
Kaylin said they believed that it was a miracle that Kayden had been granted a new lease of life.
The child’s father, Morgan Sarels, said the family were impressed at the police’s swift response in ensuring that there were people arrested for the attempted murder. Sarels said as a father, his responsibility was to ensure that he protected Kayden more.
Meanwhile, three men between the ages of 22 and 37 have been charged with the attempted murder of Kayden.
Bishop Lavis CPF chairperson Graham Lindhorst said the incident reflected the daily lived experiences of vulnerable people in gang-infested communities.
“For people to come to a street where others are sitting and pump bullets into a toddler tells you of the reality we live in. The government needs to closely look at what are our lived realities are and come up with solutions.
“We are told that after the incident the perpetrators ran with guns openly on the streets and that is because they know that there is no police visibility which could have ensured that the shooting incident did not occur,” Lindhorst said.
Lindhorst said the CPF would watch the case closely to ensure that there were no blunders.
“We hope that SAPS has gathered enough information to ensure that they have a water-tight case, as numerous times perpetrators get away with these sort of crimes because somehow investigations get bungled by the police.
“We are looking forward to ensuring that justice for Kayden is served and that a strong message is sent out to the perpetrators,” he said.