Off-duty cop dies in shoot-out
2007-10-10 12:09
Johannesburg - An off-duty police officer was killed in a supermarket robbery in Lebohang township, Mpumulanga police said on Wednesday.
Police spokesperson Superintendent Abie Khoabane said the incident happened at about 11:15 on Tuesday morning when four armed men robbed the Sizanani supermarket in Leslie.
"At gunpoint they robbed the owners of their cellphones and an undisclosed amount of cash."
Khoabane said the robbers loaded everything into a black bag and walked out the store.
"The security guard tried to chase them and the owners followed them."
The men then fired shots at the owners and security guard.
Khoabane said three off-duty police officers travelling in a vehicle then noticed the security guard chasing the men and stopped.
The pistol on the waist of the off-duty policeman driving the vehicle was visible and the robbers then started firing at him.
He was shot twice in the head and died, said Khoabane.
Community members and other police officers arrived at the scene and a shoot-out between the police and the men occurred.
One 28-year-old man was shot in the leg and arrested.
He remains under heavy police guard in the Evander hospital.
Khoabane said the other three men were still at large and police were "working around the clock" to apprehend them.
An experienced provincial team had been appointed to help with the investigation, he said.
- SAPA