Three dead, one on the run after shootout as police probe senior officer’s murder

DURBAN, June 15 (ANA) – Police in the KwaZulu-Natal province shot dead three men while one fled on Monday after a shootout linked to an investigation into the murder of a high ranking officer.

The four suspects were being sought for the murder last month of Ndwedwe acting station commander Lieutenant Colonel Jabulani Ndawonde in a drive-by shooting at Bhamshela taxi rank near KwaMaphumulo, regional police spokeswoman Colonel Thembeka Mbhele said in a statement dated Monday.

An investigation into Ndawonde’s death led police to the Maqongqo area which falls under the Bishopstowe precinct in Pietermaritzburg, where they intercepted four suspects and were met with a hail of gunfire. The suspects fled into sugar cane fields after a shootout.

“Two suspects were fatally wounded during the exchange of gunfire. A canine was shot dead and the other two canines were rushed to a veterinary clinic after they were shot by the group of thugs. Another suspect was found dead in the sugar cane fields,” Mbhele said.

Two rifles and four pistols were recovered at the scene and police established that the suspects’ vehicle was a stolen car.

The suspects were positively linked to the murder of Ndawonde as well as other murder cases committed in KwaNdengezi and surrounding areas, Mbhele said.

KwaZulu-Natal provincial commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi said police would not rest until the fourth suspect was brought to book.

“The recovery of such firearms at the hands of the criminals is a testimony that we are turning the tide against crime. We will make sure that we hunt all the criminals who are terrorising the citizens of this province,” Mkhwanazi said.

– African News Agency (ANA), Editing by Stella Mapenzauswa