ARMED men carrying AK47s opened fire on a Marshall Security response officer just minutes ago in a desperate attempt to escape after a hostage situation on Davallen Avenue, La Lucia. The officer who was responding to an alarm callout had just turned into the driveway when one of the four suspects stationed outside the house spotted him. They fired more than 15 shots in his direction, three of  them hit the vehicle while a single bullet hit the officer, wounding him in the shoulder.

The armed gang managed to escape and the patrol officer managed to drive himself to uMhlanga Hospital. He is in a stable condition according to Marshall Security’s Tyron Powell.

“The men confronted the resident when she got home, they held her up and kept her hostage while trying to ransack the home. One of the four suspects was waiting at the front door and as our officer pulled into the driveway, the suspect opened fire on him.  He was wounded in the shoulder and could not draw his weapon. The men fled in a high end vehicle with tinted windows,” he said.

Powell said the La Lucia resident was extremely traumatised after her ordeal and didn’t speak any English which may have made matters worse. It’s believed the woman is a Chinese national.

It’s believed the gang are linked to two hijackings which occurred minutes apart in Durban North last month.

The men are still on the loose.