Sunday night, January 8, a guy armed with a knife allegedly attacked the police Community Service Centre in Mthatha, Eastern Cape. The man was fatally shot by police officers from the Madeira Police Station.
The spokesperson for the South African Police Service (SAPS), Brigadier Tembinkosi Kinana, stated that the preliminary inquiry found that SAPS officers were conducting business at the Madeira Police Station when a 31-year-old man raced into the Community Service Centre wielding a knife.
The man allegedly insulted members and approached them while holding a knife.
“The surprise attack and struggle between SAPS members and the deceased suspect resulted in the suspect’s fatal shooting inside the police station,” Kinana explained.
The SAPS officers were not hurt during the altercation, and the suspect’s blade was retrieved.
“All members who were on duty were referred and counseled, while services to community members continued at the station with the assistance of other offices,” the police spokeswoman noted.
The defendant allegedly attacked many family members, including his cousin, brother, mother, and another relative from whom he took a handbag and a smartphone, before heading to the SAPS station, according to further inquiry.
“The police recovered these items and bank cards, and family members positively identified them,” stated Kinana.
The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) has started an inquest docket and is probing the incident’s circumstances as SAPS investigates a case of attempted murder.
Lieutenant-General Nomthetheleli Mene, the police commissioner of the Eastern Cape, was horrified by the occurrence and described the attack on the police station as unprovoked.
The matter has been reported to the Directorate, IPID spokesman Lizzy Suping informed The South African, and an inquiry will follow. “…we will begin our investigation into the circumstances surrounding the deceased’s fatal shooting.”
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