A Divergent Ops armed reaction officer was shot dead while on duty in Riverside, Mbombela, yesterday.

According to Lowvelder, the suspect has been arrested. He was found in possession of an AK-47 suspected to have been used to kill the officer.

“At about 23:00 our Riverside Protection Unit saw a suspect walking along the R40 near Riverside Mall. The man was carrying a heavy white bag over his shoulder. The officer called for backup when the suspect refused to stop. The suspect then walked down the hill behind the bus stop at Mafunyane. The reaction officer got out of his car and followed him. It is suspected that the suspect then shot the officer in the head with an AK-47,” Divergent Ops said.

The backup unit heard gunshots and called the victim over the radio. They arrived at the scene and were also fired at, allegedly by the suspect, but retaliated. During this time, another unit arrived.

The suspect reportedly climbed through broken palisade fencing and ran through Riverside Mall’s parking lot before eventually climbing onto the roof.

“Our reaction officer was declared dead at the scene. This morning at 07:00, we received a call from Riverside Mall that someone had spotted a bleeding man hiding on the roof. We rushed to the mall with the SAPS and climbed onto the roof where we found the alleged shooter with the self-loading rifle in front of him. He was arrested and taken to hospital to receive medical attention. We are extremely saddened with the loss of our colleague and salute our fallen hero who may not be named publicly at this stage,” Divergent Ops said.

Mpumalanga police spokesperson Brigadier Donald Mdhluli confirmed that a security officer was shot and killed, and that a suspect was arrested. He said further details would be provided later.

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