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JOHANNESBURG — One police officer was shot and killed and another was injured when unknown suspects opened fire on them during a stop and search operation in Soshanguve, north of Tshwane on Friday, Gauteng police said.
The officers were conducting the stop and search as part of Operation Paseka (Easter) along Ruth First Avenue, when occupants inside a white Toyota Corolla, which the officers had pulled over, opened fire on them before fleeing the scene, Brigadier Mathapelo Peters said.
“The sergeant succumbed to injury and was certified dead on arrival at the clinic, while the constable is in a stable condition in hospital,” Peters said.
She said the vehicle the suspects had been travelling in was confirmed as stolen from Vosloorus.
A manhunt for the suspects has since been launched, Peters said, and cases of murder and attempted murder have been opened.
She said Gauteng’s Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General Deliwe de Lange condemned the attack.
“It is ironic that Gauteng police recently held an Easter prayer service so that the dedicated men and women in blue could be free this Easter weekend to ensure that residents and visitors in Gauteng enjoy a crime free Easter long weekend.
“As sad as it is…such hideous acts will not derail the police from fulfilling our constitutional mandate. Instead, we are even more resolute to rid Gauteng of criminal elements,” De Lange said.
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter