COPS SHOOT 3 FOUND WITH MONEY SAFE, 2 DIE

MPAKA – Three people were shot, with two succumbing to their injuries, after police opened fire yesterday morning at a car the victims were travelling in at Mpaka.

The incident happened just a few metres from the Mpaka Shopping Centre. A soldier and a young woman died tragically after they succumbed to the gunshot injuries, while the third person is still being treated in hospital. Dumisani Tsabedze (37), the soldier who was based at Nokwane Headquarters, died while being attended to by nurses at the Good Shepherd Catholic Hospital (GSCH) Out-Patient Department (OPD), while Thandekile Kunene (22) succumbed to the gunshot wound at the scene of the incident. Both the deceased hailed from Nsulutane under Malindza Umphakatsi. It was also gathered that three people were in police custody, including a woman.

Beverages

According to the soldier’s brother Musa, who was found at the hospital together with the relatives of the other victims, his brother left together with his companions at around 4am at their homestead to Mpaka to buy alcoholic beverages, when they found a money safe in the middle of the road that was just a few metres from the shopping centre. Dumisani sustained a gunshot wound on the abdomen area as the bullet hit him at the back. Nurses at the OPD said the soldier died while being attended to. An undisclosed number of occupants were on board the vehicle, a Honda seven-seater sedan, and they were enjoying alcoholic beverages. Musa alleged that after seeing the money safe, which had been abandoned in the middle of the road at an area called KaLamgwambi, they alighted from the car and loaded it into their vehicle.

Musa said the boot of the car was unable to close properly, hence they remained on the side of the road dancing to music played inside the car only to be confronted by gunshots that were opened just a distance from where they had parked the car. “I was told that my brother was asleep inside the car and the shots managed to hit him, while the others ran for cover after suspecting that the shots were aimed at them. At that instance, the police, who were in hiding, showed up and advanced to the car while still firing shots,” alleged Musa. He further mentioned that one of the occupants, Thandekile, died on the spot. “The money safe was big in such a way that they struggled to load it into the car. They were at the wrong place at the wrong time and had nothing to do with the theft of the money safe. Their sin was seeing a money safe in the middle of the road and trying to take it,” he said.

Adding, Musa said he was informed by witnesses that there were no weapons or tools of opening the safe found inside the car. He said they received a call from some people who were at the scene, informing his family that his brother had been shot by the police together with others. “We rushed to the scene but were later informed that my brother and the others had been rushed to the hospital,” he said. Musa said the police denied them access to see their relatives. Thandekile’s father, James Kunene, said he was still shocked by what had befallen his daughter. James further appealed for financial help from members of the public to bury his daughter as he was unemployed and depended on odd jobs to put food on the table. “I am still shocked by what happened because I also received a call informing me that my daughter had been shot dead at Mpaka. She was shot in the head. It is very sad because they were not carrying any weapons. Government has to do something about this. We are now afraid as a nation. Police have to fire warning shots before directly opening fire,” said the father. At the crime scene, police officers from the Mpaka and Siteki police stations were found conducting investigations.

Also present at the scene was top police detective, Senior Superintendent Clement Sihlongonyane, who was in the company of senior officers from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) at the Siteki Police Station. It was further established that the money safe had initially been stolen by unknown thugs at an MTN outlet situated at the Mpaka Shopping Centre and was taken out through the roof of the building. Police officers climbed to the rooftop of the building during their investigations. It was also discovered that the survivor of the shooting incident, Sandziso, was supposed to be transferred to the Mbabane Government Hospital this morning. “He was shot in his left cheek. He was taken for an X-ray where the doctors had to run some diagnoses,” said a healthcare worker.

Traumatised

An uncle to Sandziso, Muzi, said he was still traumatised about the whole ordeal. “I am short for words on how I can describe this incident, because the children left home only for us to be told that police have shot them. We are still shocked as a family,” said Muzi. Mpaka Police Station Commander, identified as Mrs Bhembe, said at around 4:35am, a call was made to the police station about the break-in at the shop centre, but police attended to the incident at around 5:30am. Make Thandi Masuku, the owner of the sedan, said her son left with the car early that morning. “They found the money safe on the road after noticing that it might be loaded with money. They loaded the safe and when they tried to close the car boot, they failed and police then opened fire. They died for finding the money safe,” she said.

A nursing student at Good Shepherd Catholic College of Health Sciences, who is a relative of the soldier, said the police prevented her from seeing her relative when he was brought to the hospital. Malindza Umphakatsi Bucopho Albert ‘Seven Days’ Tsabedze expressed his disgruntlement on the matter. “We will call a meeting soon to map a way forward on the continued spate of criminal elements around this area,” he said.

Exhibits

Worth mentioning is that both the car and the money safe were taken to the Siteki Police Station to be kept as exhibits. It could not be ascertained how much money was found inside the safe by the police as rumours started to make the rounds that only cellphones and other items were found when police unlocked it.  On another note, two police officers, with one armed with a rifle, denied this reporter access to see Sandziso at the hospital. Lubombo Regional Police Commander Charles Magagula said the survivor was still under police investigations, hence it was not advisable to interview him. “Even if they are in hospital, they are still suspects and under the police, hence allowing the media would jeopardise our investigations,” he said.

Afraid

On another note, the nurses at the hospital, speaking in hushed tones, indicated that they were now afraid to be seen talking to reporters, following the confiscation of a cellphone belonging to one of their colleagues. “We are also afraid of the police even when attending to injured patients as they don’t give us space to do our job freely,” said one healthcare worker.
Deputy Police Information and Communications Officer Inspector Nosipho Mnguni confirmed the matter. “We have a matter whereby two people were shot dead and three are with the police, while one is still in hospital,” she said. Meanwhile, in October last year, this publication reported that police shot dead two people at Dwaleni after being found stealing copper.

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