Ambush turns into shoot-out with suspects
The suspects were found in a mountainous area and another shoot-out ensued
Police officers attached to the Provincial Task Team, and a colleague, were ambushed in the Shoba area last Tuesday morning while driving to work. Two men, who were hiding in the bushes, opened fire on the vehicle the officers were travelling in. The policemen returned fire and the suspects fled into nearby bushes. The task team members were not injured. However, their colleague sustained gunshot wounds to both arms and was rushed to hospital.
Police launched an immediate manhunt and the Vryheid K9 Unit was called in to help. The suspects were found in a mountainous area and another shoot-out ensued. The suspects eventually surrendered, and an AK-47 assault rifle and two pistols (one of them licensed) were found in their possession. The crime scene was processed by Vryheid Forensic Services, with one of the firearms and a few pieces of clothing found abandoned near the scene. It is believed that the suspects left some of their clothing behind to possibly avoid being identified at a later stage.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the brother of one of the suspects, who is in custody for the murder of Sergeant Sakheyedwa Mlambo, was due to appear in court the same day. One of the officers was opposing bail. Sergeant Mlambo, a member of the Vryheid Crime Intelligence Unit, was gunned down and killed in the Hwanqana area in December 2021. One of the arrested suspects was also wanted for the murder of Sergeant Mlambo’s father, Bhekuyise, who was shot and killed at his home in January 2020.
Police are still searching for the vehicle (allegedly fitted with false registration plates) that dropped the suspects off moments before the ambush. The duo appeared before the Vryheid Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, facing charges of attempted murder as well as illegal possession of firearms and ammunition.
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The news provided to you in this link comes to you from the editorial staff of the Vryheid Herald, a sold newspaper distributed in the Vryheid area.
