3 COPS SHOOTING: OVER 30 GUNSHOTS FIRED

MANZINI – The gunmen were set to assassinate law enforcers on Monday night as over 30 gunshots were fired, eyewitnesses say.

The shooting, which injured three law enforcers, happened just after 8pm on Monday night, at Kwaluseni. The police officers were shot at while in transit, in a white Toyota Hilux GD6, about 30 seconds after leaving OK Foods Kwaluseni. The officers were said to have assisted employees at the supermarket to end operations for the day safely, as during this time of the year, most big complexes become soft targets for criminals. Several witnesses informed this publication that two sedans, Volkswagen (VW) Golf 6 were parked at the entrance of the complex. The bystanders, in retrospect, said the two sedans were at the parking bay of the complex for a lengthy period and were positioned in such a way that they could have been used to block the entrances of the parking bay and or be utilised by the gunmen to get away from the scene.

Cameras

The onlookers claimed that while the two vehicles were at the entrance points of the parking bay, in positions wherein the security cameras mounted at the complex could not capture them, another black VW sedan was constantly driving up and down the road adjacent to the complex. One of the eyewitnesses said just before the police officers arrived at the shopping complex, there were four security personnel who arrived at the business establishment. The bystander said the security personnel comprised of two members of His Majesty’s Correctional Services (HMCS) and another pair from the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS). He said two of the officers, who were carrying assault rifles, had been in strategic positions within the complex while the other pair monitored the operations. 

However, the witness said they left within 20 minutes. All the while, the bystander said the two vehicles were parked near the entrances; but they did not suspect much of them. After the security personnel from the two institutions reportedly left, the onlooker claimed that the three police officers arrived and facilitated the smooth closure of OK Foods Supermarket. As he was still going about his business, the onlooker said it was hardly 10 seconds after the vehicle had joined the Ndlunganye - Unversity of Eswatini Public Road that he heard rapid thuds reverberating in the air. On reflex, he claimed to have curled in a kneeling position before taking note of what was happening. At this point, the witness claimed to have seen sparks (presumably from the gunfire) crackling into the air. This, he claimed, was followed by retaliation which made it sound like a synchronised act. The witness said he was convinced that the police officer who was firing back and the gunmen were using assault rifles.

Meanwhile, another source who was also near the market stalls, said he took cover in fear of stray bullets. The onlooker claimed that the gunmen were on foot and walked towards the shade of the market stalls at Eposini, wherein the police vehicle was shot at. He claimed that the shooting lasted for between 10 to 15 minutes. “The gunmen started shooting at the police car just after it went through the speed humps. I think they wanted to kill every person in the car as they shot at the windscreen and the passenger side window,” the witness narrated.
He said it was after the retaliation of one of the police officers that the shots fired by the suspects ricocheted from a distance before fading away altogether. The onlooker suspected that when the police officer retaliated, the gunmen started to flee the scene on foot. The eyewitness said there was a high possibility that the gunmen boarded their getaway vehicles along the road as the creeping darkness of the night afforded them an opportunity to runway without being easily noticed.

Meanwhile, at this point, the witness said many people were confused while others were scared such that they hurried to their stalls to close operations for the day. A few, he narrated, sought assistance from a vehicle of a security company to ferry the three injured police officers to the Raleigh Fitkin Memorial (RFM) Hospital. On the other hand, the witnesses claimed that the two sedans, which they were convinced were part of the gunmen’s operation, nonchalantly disappeared under the cover of the night. The eyewitnesses further claimed that over 30 shots were fired during the shootout between the police officers and the four gunmen. The Toyota Hilux GD6 double cab, which is part of a fleet of vehicles leased by government, was sprayed with a hail of bullets by the gunmen, resulting in its windscreen and some windows being shattered.

Debris of glass was found on the tarmac along the Ndlunganye - University of Eswatini Public Road where the shooting took place. On Monday night, from about 8:30pm until around 11pm, a contingent of heavily armed police officers blocked the road with the Scenes of Crime Department gathering evidence. The evidence collected is said to have exceeded 30 cartridges which, according to sources, were from different assault rifles. The shells were scattered along the tarmac and collected near the market stalls wherein the four gunmen were said to have been positioned when targeting the law enforcers. As this was happening, a number of motorists residing around Mbhuleni were diverted to use alternative routes. On the other hand, a contingent of senior police officers were yesterday led by investigators to the crime scene.

Positions

They were shown the scene and the positions in which the gunmen had assumed during the shooting. They arrived in a number of vehicles, which drew the attention of some of the Monday night eyewitnesses. The recreation of the crime scene by the investigators did not last more than 30 minutes as they left Kwaluseni at around 10am. Meanwhile, Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Superintendent Phindile Vilakati confirmed that there was a shooting. When sought to establish the state of the three officers, she said their welfare was known by their immediate relatives and the Ministry of Health. Vilakati further said there were no people apprehended for now and investigations were still ongoing.

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