Durban – Three violent men wanted in connection with at least 10 murders and ATM bombings were fatally wounded in a shootout with police at KwaDlangezwa area in Empangeni, KwaZulu-Natal, in the early hours of Friday, (26 July 2024).
Acting on a tip-off, the KwaZulu-Natal SA Police Service (SAPS) Provincial Stabilisation Team, which also forms part of Operation Vala uMgodi, swooped on the suspects’ hideout in KwaDlangezwa.
Narrating events leading to the shootout, police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said: “When the police announced their presence, the suspects opened fire, sparking a shootout, which ended with the three suspects fatally wounded”.
A day before the deadly shootout, the same suspects were allegedly involved in an ATM bombing incident in Esikhaleni.
Colonel Netshiunda said a suspected ATM bomber was fatally wounded in the incident.
Police also recovered two guns from the scene, which was still being searched for more evidence.
The SAPS KwaZulu-Natal Commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi has warned criminals “who shoot at the police should expect the same kind of response”.
Lieutenant General Mkhwanazi added: “Police officers have a mandate to arrest and bring perpetrators to justice.
“However, if police find themselves under gunfire, the only option they have in order to come out alive is through the return of fire.”
