Cop shoots self in kombi chase

Owen Chirikure Herald Reporter
A traffic cop shot himself on his left leg when his service pistol accidentally discharged while chasing a fleeing commuter omnibus along Plymouth Road in the Southerton industrial area of the capital last Friday.

The incident occurred near Olivine Industries when the cop and his workmate were on a motorbike in pursuit of the fleeing kombi.

Workers in the industrial area panicked when they heard gunshots as the cops pursued the kombi crew which had fled from a roadblock.

Onlookers were shocked to see one of the cops disembarking from the motor bike limping with blood flowing from below the knee.

When The Herald crew arrived at the scene, the cop had already been taken to hospital.

“The cop was assisted by a man who rushed him to hospital,” said Mr Elias Chishaya, who works at Olivine Industries. “The cop shot himself on the leg and he was badly injured.”

Cat-and-mouse battles between the police, kombi and pirate taxi operators have claimed the lives of a number of cops and passengers in recent years.

Efforts to get a comment from the police were fruitless.