Pretoria - National Police Commissioner General Riah Phiyega has expressed outrage and concern about the rate at which police officers continue to be killed by criminals.
Over the past five days, five police officers were killed - one in Gauteng, another in Limpopo and three in the Western Cape.
On Friday, Lieutenant Colonel Knox Chauke, a training coordinator at the Human Resources Division (SAPS Head Office), was gunned down in front of his house in Kagiso. Nothing was taken from him.
On Sunday, Lieutenant Yezindaba Meshack Shikati, 54, and a constable were shot at by two men in Ritavi, Limpopo.
The two police officers were attending to a complaint at Mabuza tavern in Patanage village when they came under heavy gunfire. The constable escaped unharmed but the lieutenant was killed instantly.
In the Western Cape, three police officers lost their lives, also at the hands of unscrupulous gunmen.
In the first incident, the body of a 26-year-old sergeant from Gugulethu police station was found with multiple gunshot wounds next to his vehicle in Faure Road in the Mfuleni area, near Kuils River.
In the latest incident yesterday, two police officers - a sergeant and a constable aged 35 and 28 respectively - were gunned down in Nyanga.
The police officers pursued a suspected stolen vehicle, which was abandoned by the occupants who then fled on foot. They were gunned down in cold blood. Both members' guns were taken from them.
Phiyega said she is deeply saddened by the loss life within the SAPS.
"We remain resolute in our endeavours to fight crime and we will conduct round-the-clock investigations into all these incidents and bring those responsible to book,” Phiyega said.
She urged communities to join the police in efforts to bring an end to this brutality.
“We are appealing to whoever has any information on these incidents to immediately inform our police officers either at their nearest police station or by calling Crime Stop on 08600 10111.”
Callers may remain anonymous and all information will be treated as strictly confidential. - SAnews.gov.za
