Gauteng police have launched a manhunt for suspects who opened fire on a Flying Squad vehicle in Soweto West just after midday on Sunday‚ killing one of the police officers.
Police said the 36-year-old constable and two colleagues who were on routine crime prevention duty had stopped at the Engen filling station in Mofolo South when they spotted a suspicious vehicle and followed it to Elias Motswaledi Road.
“The suspects suddenly opened fire at the police vehicle and the Constable who was driving‚ was shot in the upper body. A 14-year old passer-by was also shot and was rushed to a nearby hospital.
The police member was declared dead on the scene‚” police said. It said the suspects were driving a silver Mercedes Benz with tinted windows.
The vehicle’s registration number WKR935GP has since been confirmed by police as bogus.