'Cop shooter' gunned down

2007-12-17 12:34

Durban - A KwaZulu-Natal man - believed to be the one who repeatedly shot and wounded a policeman at the Pavilion Shopping Mall last month - was shot dead by police on Monday, a police spokesperson said.

Superintendent Danelia Veldhuizen said the man was shot at his home in Malvern, south of Durban, shortly after midnight.

The Durban Organised Crime Unit and Malvern Crime Prevention officers traced the man to his home through information given to them.

"It was also through information that police found out he was (Detective Inspector Andre) Mostert's sharpshooter," said Veldhuizen.

"Police went to the man's home address and cut the house lock to gain entry."

When police entered the home, the man grabbed a firearm from the cupboard and pointed it at police.

"Police shot at the man and killed him," said Veldhuizen.

Head of the Durban Organised Crime Unit, Director Johann Booysen, said the unit was still searching for two other people who were involved in a robbery at the Pavillion which resulted in the policeman being shot.

"We have already identified them, we are just busy tracing them," he said.

Mostert was with his wife shopping at the mall on November 15 when a gang robbed Arthur Kaplan Jewellers.

Mostert intervened and opened fire on the robbers. They returned fire and Mostert was shot and wounded.

Pavillion general manager Preston Gaddy told reporters the three gunmen left the store with two bags of jewellery.

- SAPA