A policeman travelling in an unmarked police car was shot and killed in Durban’s Umlazi area, police said on Saturday.
Police spokesperson Captain Khephu Ndlovu said the 25-year-old police officer was travelling in an unmarked police car with three people when they were held up by six armed men.
Ndlovu said that two of the occupants managed to flee, but the policeman and one of the civilians were robbed of their cellphones. The policeman also had his service pistol taken from him before he was shot in the midriff.
The armed men then drove off and an ambulance was called by community members. However, the policeman died in hospital.
Ndlovu said it was not immediately clear whether the three civilians in the car were informers or what the policeman, who is based in Durban’s KwaMashu area, was doing in Umlazi.
The white car in which the six men were travelling was later recovered by police. Ndlovu said the vehicle had previously been reported as stolen at Durban’s Point police station.
Further details were not immediately available. – Sapa