Cape Town police on Monday confirmed that a 29-year-old Uber driver was shot dead in Belhar on Sunday morning.
A case of murder was being investigated after a shooting at Violin Crescent, said Sergeant Noloyiso Rwexana.
No arrests have been made.
Uber, in a statement sent to News24, said its incident response team confirmed that the attack happened off the app, “so this has nothing to do with Uber’s technology”.
“Our law enforcement liaison team has been in touch with the police and they have indicated that there is currently no motive for the shooting therefore no assumptions (about Uber) should be made before evidence has been gathered,” the company said.
However, Uber said it had reached out to the police and the family of the driver to offer support.
“While there is nothing to indicate this has anything to do with Uber, we will support the police investigation in every way possible.”
Uber recently began a series of driver safety sessions across South Africa.
The first session took place on November 14 in Durban, followed by Cape Town on November 17 and ended off in Johannesburg on November 21.
“We are working daily to improve the Uber experience for both riders and drivers,” said Alon Lits, general manager of Uber in sub-Saharan Africa, at the workshop.
“Empowering drivers so that they can be part of the solution to keeping South Africa’s streets safe is essential. I’m really proud of what we have achieved in the last week to raise awareness and provide important safety tips to drivers to help make every Uber experience reliable and safe.”
