The court appearance of the 11 men arrested after a bloody shoot-out with police in Jeppestown on Sunday has been brought forward to Tuesday, Gauteng police said.
The men were initially scheduled to appear in the Roodepoort Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, but the date was changed around 9am on Tuesday, said police spokesperson Senior Superintendent Mary Martins-Engelbrecht.
Inspectors Frederick ”Frikkie” van Heerden (32) Nzama Victor Mathye (49) both of the West Rand dog unit; Sergeant Gert Schoeman (30) of the West Rand emergency response service; and Constable Peter Francois Seaward (31) of the Johannesburg dog unit were killed in a shootout with the 11.
Another eight robbers also died in the shootout.
The group had robbed a Pick ‘n Pay in Honeydew, north-west of Johannesburg on Sunday, and police were led to the house by one person arrested at the scene of the crime. This person is also expected to appear in court.
Martins-Engelbrecht said there had been no further arrests and police were in the process of profiling those involved.
”We are not going reveal anything more,” she said.
Minister of Safety and Security Charles Nqakula said on Monday that he was very concerned about the serious and violent nature of crimes against ”soft targets”.
Reacting to reporters’ questions following the shoot-out, he repeated his statement that anyone pointing a gun at a police officer would be killed.
”There is nobody who points a firearm at another person, not unless they mean to cause harm … You don’t point a firearm and say ‘my intention was to be a good person’,” Nqakula said.
He said the bloodshed at the weekend’s incident was regrettable.
”It is better, always, that people who are criminals be arrested and prosecuted.”
But the situation required that police shoot back and he said they had every right to do so.
”When you point a gun at someone, you are not playing. You seek to cause harm to that person,” Nqakula said.
He said police had the right, when a firearm was pointed at them, to protect themselves ”by whatever way possible”. — Sapa