A top Cape Town anti-gang detective, Lt-Col Charl Kinnear, was shot dead in front of his home while his 24 year old son watched on Friday.

Three men can be seen fleeing from the scene soon after the incident while community members gave chase into a neighboring informal settlement.

Kinnear survived a similar assassination attempt in November and was provided with 24 hour security after that incident. However, the security was withdrawn in January.

On Wednesday, Kinnear was in Johannesburg to received information from a source on information regarding the operations of gangs in Cape Town.

Police Minister, Bheki Cele, said he would launch an investigation to determine why the police protection around Kiennar was withdrawn.