Police officer shot dead at Durban bus stop

Acting national police commissioner Lieutenant-General Khomotso Phahlane has appealed to the public to assist law enforcement agencies to apprehend those responsible for the ongoing killing of police officers after yet another one was gunned down in Durban on Wednesday.

Fifty-eight-year-old Captain Bheki Simelane was fatally wounded at a bus stop a few metres away from his home in Phoenix near Durban on Wednesday morning. He was on his way to work at the time.

According to eyewitnesses at the scene‚ he was approached by a man who shot him twice. The suspect is believed to have fled the scene in a red VW polo. 

Similane‚ a veteran of the department‚ was found with all his personal belongings with him‚ including his cell-phone‚ wallet and firearm.

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KwaZulu-Natal’s Acting Provincial Commissioner‚ Lieutenant General Bheki Langa has described Simelane’s death as a huge loss to the force. 

“Captain Simelane has paid the ultimate price with his life after 35 years of uninterrupted service‚ We thereby call upon the courts of the country to ensure that they mete out the harshest penalty possible” Langa said.

Langa said police were investigating the motive behind the assassination and a case of murder had been registered with the Phoenix police station.

“We call upon anyone with information on this‚ to anonymously call the crime stop hotline on 08600 10111 or alternatively ‚ send a text message to 32211 with information.”

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“The murder of any of our own is intolerable and such acts should not go unpunished. It is sad that we will be burying one of our own because of an act of cowardice by a suspect(s) who will be caught and brought to justice. We hereby call upon anyone with information to come forward and assist us” said Phahlane.

Since the beginning of this financial year‚ beginning on 1 April 2017‚ two members had lost their lives in the line of duty‚ he said.

“The Management of the South African Police Service views the attacks on our members very seriously and calls upon members to respond accordingly to such attacks within the confines of the laws of our country. The use of proportional force and the exercising of maximum restraint must be guiding principles in the execution of our policing mandate. The SAPS will continue to ensure that officers had the necessary skills required to respond to specific situations‚” Phalane added.