12 dead in Jo'burg bloodbath

2006-06-25 18:17

Johannesburg - A shoot-out in Jeppestown, Johannesburg on Sunday ended in what has been described as a bloodbath with four policemen and eight suspects killed.

An emotional Gauteng provincial commissioner, Perumal Naidoo, told reporters at the scene that "four policemen had lost their lives in the line of duty".

Paramedics at the scene described it as a "bloodbath".

The suspects were shot at a house in Jeppestown where they were hiding after robbing a Pick'n Pay in Honeydew, north of the city.

One robber was arrested at the supermarket and 14 others handed themselves over to police at the house on the corner of Main and Hans streets, Naidoo said.

He said two police officers, as "a number of the robbers" were injured.

The area was still cordoned off by 18:00 on Sunday night as police were searching the house where the shooting took place.

Naidoo, who was flanked by area commissioners paid tribute to the four police officers who died.

'Brave guys' "The robbers that were dealt with today were causing havoc in the whole province and I am proud of the four policemen who paid with their lives to ensure that Gauteng will always be safe.

"These guys were brave guys. It is unfortunate and sad that they have died," he said.

He said several police units - including the flying squad and the task force - had converged on the house where the shooting took place.

When Naidoo was asked if a hostage drama took place at the house he replied: "I will not say that at this stage".

This, after earlier reports that two policemen hiding in the house had been taken hostage.

Of the two police officers who were injured, one is male and one female.

Police chased the robbers from Honeydew, where the supermarket was robbed earlier in the day.

The gang took refuge in the house in Jeppestown, where the shoot-out ensued.

A large crowd of onlookers were still milling around the scene of the shoot-out on Sunday night.

- SAPA