A FAMILY who lost four relatives, including three young children, when a security officer allegedly opened fire at their Bruntville home in Mooi River at the weekend, say they have a lot of questions about what could have led to the shooting. File Picture
DURBAN – A FAMILY who lost four relatives, including three young children, when a security officer allegedly opened fire at their Bruntville home in Mooi River at the weekend, say they have a lot of questions about what could have led to the shooting.
A security officer from Mooi River went on a shooting spree and allegedly killed six people, including his 5-yearold son, in two different towns.
According to the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid), the incident took place on Saturday when the 26-year-old suspect first shot his 40-year-old colleague at New Formosa in Estcourt.
It was alleged that the victim was shot in the head and his body was dumped in the veld.
Ipid spokesperson Grace Langa said it was alleged that the suspect was with his colleague in a company vehicle when he shot him.
Langa said the suspect then proceeded to Mooi River where he also allegedly shot dead another security officer, aged 42, whom he suspected of being in a relationship with his ex-girlfriend.
She alleged that the suspect then drove to Bruntville where he shot dead his 34-year-old ex-girlfriend’s sister and three children.
“He shot his own 5-year-old son, a 34-year-old female relative and her 5-year-old son, and a 13-year-old relative in Mooi River. It is further alleged that the suspect then fled the scene and proceeded to his ex-girlfriend’s place of employment on Alexandra Terrace. On arrival, the suspect fired several shots at the woman and ran away,” added Langa.
Langa stated that the 25-year-old victim was critically injured and was transported to a hospital where she remained in a critical condition.
The suspect then drove to his homestead in Matimatolo, Greytown, Langa said.
Langa said the suspect was intercepted by police and a shoot-out occurred and the man died.
“Ipid is investigating his death and a post-mortem will be conducted and more statements will be collected.”
KZN provincial police spokesperson Brigadier Jay Naicker also confirmed the incident and said police were investigating six counts of murder and one count of attempted murder.
A relative of the deceased, who asked not to be named, said the family were all sitting in their home when the suspect entered the house.
The relative said the incident had left them with a lot of questions that no one could answer at this stage.
“We don’t know what got into him. For now, we are just hoping and hoping that the person in the hospital will get better soon so that she can at least brief us about what happened.
“The sad part is that when she wakes up, she will have to face the depressing news that her son has passed away. So this is just too much for everyone and the situation is still tense at the moment,” she said.
KwaZulu-Natal Social Development spokesperson Mhlabunzima Memela said that it was shocking that after so many campaigns that the government had embarked on to bring awareness and call for an end to gender-based violence, such brutal incidents were still happening.
He said there were several options available to people to deal with their problems.
“It’s unfortunate that every time we talk about people getting murdered, we always speak about women and children,” said Memela.
Memela added that the department would assign social workers to assist the bereaved families through this difficult time.
THE MERCURY
Related Topics: