Pretoria- A member of the Hawks’ Tactical Operations Management Section (Toms) and three suspects were killed in a shootout in Mamelodi during a sting operation on Thursday, officials said.
Officers had received a tip-off about suspects who were armed with high-calibre rifles at the house.
Hawks spokesperson Brigadier Nomthandazo Mbambo said a shoot-out ensued when the officers stormed the house on Thursday.
“As they approached the address, the suspects took shots at the members and a shoot-out ensued. Three suspects were fatally shot and one TOMS member was fatally wounded,’’ Mbambo said.
She said several firearms were recovered during the operation.
Hawks head, Lieutenant-General Godfrey Lebeya, expressed his heartfelt sadness in the loss of one of their members.
“The proliferation of illegal firearms in our communities is resulting not only the murders of innocent lives but also robs us of the lives of police officers who have sworn to defend this country and it inhabitants,’’ he said.
In another similar incident in April, a police officer attached to the SAPS crime intelligence unit was murdered while he and a colleague were responding to a reported crime scene where diesel was being stolen at a mine in Mpumalanga.
Hawks spokesperson in Mpumalanga, Captain Dineo Lucy Sekgotodi, said while driving on the road, the officers came across a yellow diesel bowser truck matching the description and made a U-turn, and stopped the heavy vehicle.
“It is further alleged that three male persons alighted from the truck and started shooting at the officers. In the process, one member was shot and later succumbed to his injuries while the other sustained serious injuries and was taken to hospital in Middelburg for treatment,” Sekgotodi said at the time.
By IOL
