Durban – An armed response officer was shot dead while sitting in his vehicle in Phoenix on Thursday night.
The incident took place on the Phoenix Highway at around 8pm.
Shawn Herbst from Netcare 911 said reports indicated that an armed reaction officer’s was sitting in his vehicle which was parked on a grass patch next to the road when he came under fire.
“When medics arrived on scene they found the patient, an adult male approximately 40-years-old, lying on the floor.
“The patient was assessed. However, he showed no signs of life and was sadly declared deceased by an Emer-G-Med Paramedic.”
Herbst said the officer’s firearm had been stolen.
He said circumstances leading up to the incident were unknown.
Provincial police spokesperson Constable Thenjiswa Ngcobo said a case of murder had been opened.
“Phoenix police were called to a murder scene at Phoenix Highway. On arrival they were shown a body of a man in a vehicle with a gunshot wound to the head.”
Blue Security has been approached for comment.
In a separate incident that occurred in August, a security company officer was shot while responding to an alarm activation at a home in Overport.
The officer, according to Kyle van Reenen, of Emer-G-Med Paramedics, had encountered an unknown number of armed suspects.
“A shootout ensued, resulting in the officer sustaining a gunshot wound to right lower arm.”
He was taken to hospital for further treatment.
In another incident in July, off-duty security officer was allegedly killed for his firearm in Canelands, north of Durban.
The 35-year-old was shot multiple times.
IOL