A police officer was shot and killed and three others, including a security guard, were disarmed and wounded during a robbery at a filling station in Tembisa, Johannesburg.
It is understood, a group of criminals entered a filling station on Andrew Mapheto Drive early on Thursday morning and robbed the convenience store of undisclosed amount of money and cigarettes.
As the suspects were about to flee, they noticed a group of police officers entering the filling station, Athlenda Mathe, the police spokesperson said.
“They immediately opened fire on the three members attached to the Tembisa South Police Station and a security guard. The three members and the security guard sustained multiple gunshot wounds and the group of criminals stole their service pistols.”
“All three members and the security guard were taken to hospital for treatment. One of the members sadly died in hospital. A manhunt is underway for the group of at least 15 suspects who fled the scene in a Toyota Quantum and Toyota Corolla Prestige,” Mathe said.
National police commissioner General Fannie Masomela has directed provincial commissioner Lieutenant-General Elias Mawela to mobilise maximum resources to track down the culprits.
“We are not going to allow criminals to run amok and do as they wish; we are coming for each one of them. We are closing the net on each person in this country who is found to be on the wrong side of the law,” Masomela said.
Source: News24, The Citizen, Times Live, image from Twitter: SAPS