The Public Safety officer who was attacked by angry Mkhamba Gardens residents on Saturday morning has been charged by police.
Latest information received by the Ladysmith Gazette is that the Public Safety officer allegedly pointed a gun at a member of the Mkhamba community after an argument broke out. The officer was off-duty at the time and had his service pistol with him.
It seems that those who were present at the time of the argument and allegedly saw the officer pointing the gun responded by attacking him.
The officer was transported by Ladysmith police officers to La Verna Hospital and was later discharged. Police communications officer W/O Khan has confirmed that a case has been opened against the officer by community members.
According to other sources, the officer was responding to a robbery at the house of a friend who lived nearby. The suspect attempted to escape and ran into a nearby house, screaming for help. An argument erupted between the officer and community members; the latter siding with the suspect and attacking the officer.
He drew his service pistol to defend himself. Police were called and had to escort the injured Public Safety officer from the scene. At this stage, it is not believed that any shots were fired.
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