Fugitive shot dead at Mataffin
After police tracked down a fugitive murder suspect, bullets started firing in a Mataffin township.
A male fugitive was shot and killed during a shoot-out with police in a township in Mataffin on Thursday February 2 at 13:30.
A provincial police spokesperson, Brigadier Selvy Mohlala, said the SAPS received information about a wanted suspect, Bheki Martin Phiri (28), who had been spotted next to the Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency offices. On arrival, Phiri reportedly noticed the police and started firing shots at them. They responded and defended themselves. The suspect was fatally shot and declared dead by the paramedics on the scene.
ALSO READ: Man killed in accident outside Barberton
“A firearm, as well as live ammunition, was found next to him. As is standard police procedure, a case of murder was opened and the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) will conduct an investigation,” Mohlala said.
According to him, Phiri had been wanted for escaping from custody in November, as well as for attempted murder in which a police sergeant (40) was wounded by the suspect in December.
ALSO READ: R40 near Bushbuckridge cleared after protests
The Ipid spokesperson, Lizzy Suping, confirmed that preliminary investigations regarding the shooting were under way would be shared once completed.
