• Three people, wearing balaclavas and armed with pistols, entered a Mamelodi tavern in the early hours of Monday.
• They fired in the air before approaching a 33-year-old man, shooting him twice.
• The shooting comes against the backdrop of a bloody weekend for tavern patrons.

One person was shot dead at Monaco Tavern in Mamelodi, Pretoria, in the early hours of Monday, Gauteng police said.

“Three suspects wearing balaclavas and armed with pistols arrived at the venue finding a group of people sitting around. The trio fired in the air before approaching the 33-year-old man and shooting him twice,” said police spokesperson Colonel Dimakatso Sello.

Sello said the motive for the shooting was still unknown.

A case of murder was opened.

It comes after a bloody weekend, which led to the death of 22 tavern patrons.

Sixteen of the 22 people died following a shooting at a tavern in Nomzamo Park, Soweto, during the early hours of Sunday morning. In addition, eight people were critically injured.

Four others were killed in Pietermaritzburg when two gunmen opened fire on patrons at Samkelisiwe Tavern, in Sweetwaters, at about 20:30 on Saturday.

In Katlehong, Ekurhuleni, on Friday, two people were killed at a tavern when gunmen randomly opened fire on patrons.

During a visit to Soweto on Monday, Police Minister Bheki Cele said more than 130 AK-47 cartridges were collected from the scene.

Cele promised that members of the Tactical Response Team (TRT) would conduct a door-to-door operation to look for unlicensed firearms.