Times Of Swaziland: FLEEING ‘DD’ SUSPECT FALLS INTO DONGA, DIES

FLEEING ‘DD’ SUSPECT FALLS INTO DONGA, DIES
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Mbongiseni Ndzimandze and Thokozani Mamba   on 22/12/2020 08:56:00


MBABANE - The life of a fleeing suspected drink-driver ended abruptly after he
fell off an edge of the road and hit his head on boulders, which are about seven
metres down the slope on the side of the road.
The incident happened around 2am yesterday, opposite Mbabane Central High
School. Sifiso Dlamini (34) of Mpolonjeni is believed to have been running away
from police officers, who had mounted a roadblock near the overhead bridge, a
few metres away from the school. This, according to a witness, was after the
police allegedly removed the car keys from the ignition after Sifiso opened the
door. According to the witness, who is a security guard stationed in one of the
shops in the area, Sifiso was with a companion in the vehicle and they were
travelling towards town. Police officers are said to have signalled to Sifiso,
who was suspected to be intoxicated, to stop the vehicle at the roadblock and he
complied.
Jumped
However, immediately after pulling over, he reportedly jumped out of the car and
fled. He showed the officers a clean pair heels. This was after, according to
the security guard, one of the police officers allegedly pursued the fleeing
suspect. Sifiso is said to have taken off running along the edge of the road on
the left side towards town. However, the witness said Sifiso did not get far.
Due to the fact that there is no proper pavement, but an approximately by
seven-metre-slope beginning almost immediately from the edge of the road where
he was running, Sifiso, according to the security guard, fell and somersaulted
all the way down and landed with his head on the boulders at the bottom where
there is a stream.
The slope is covered in short grass and at around 2am, it is believed to have
been moist with dew and was slippery. It did not take long for reporters from
this publication to locate the spot where Sifiso fell since, from the edge of
the road, it was not difficult to miss the soil that had been sprinkled on the
grass, probably by the police, to cover blood. Standing on the roadside and
looking down the slope, it was obvious that some activity had taken place. When
these reporters took a closer look further down the bushy slope around 1pm
yesterday, the surface of one of the boulders was almost covered in blood and it
is believed that it was the one that Sifiso hit his head on when he fell. Police
are said to have taken the injured Sifiso to hospital after some delay and he
was certified dead on arrival.