A MAN who was held up at gunpoint turned the tables on his attacker by producing his own (licensed) weapon and firing a shot in self-defence.
Two men and a woman were walking near Tin Town in Gamalakhe last Sunday night when they were approached by four men who threatened the woman with a knife.
One of the four men pressed a long barrel gun to the head of one of the men and demanded money and cellphones.
However the man who was being held up managed to fire a shot in self-defence, prompting the gang to flee.
Police spokesman, Lieutenant-Colonel Zandra Wiid said he then reported the incident to the Gamalakhe SAPS.
A while later, she said, a man reported at the police station that his friend was missing and that he suspected that he might have been shot.
“Lieutenant Welcome Shusha then questioned the person and realised that he was referring to the same incident as that previously reported at the police station,” she said.
He was then arrested as a suspect in the attempted robbery and appeared in the Ramsgate Magistrate’s Court on Monday this week.
The case was postponed for seven days for bail application and further investigation. It is believed he is now in police custody.
An inquest docket was initially opened but has since been changed to a murder docket, since community members found the body of a man in the bush on Monday this week. Lt-Col Wiid confirmed that he had been shot.
The victim of the initial hold-up was subsequently charged with murder and appeared in court on Tuesday this week.
Detective Warrant Officer Blessing Mthetwa of Gamalakhe police is investigating the cases.
