Three police officers killed in shooting incident

The South African Police Service in the Eastern Cape has confirmed the deaths of three police officers following a shooting incident in Kariega in the early hours of Wednesday morning. Police said officers responded to reports of gunfire at a home in Rudman Street just after midnight, where they found three constables with multiple gunshot wounds. Two officers were declared dead at the scene, while a third died after being transported to hospital.

#sapsEC[THREE SAPS MEMBERS DIE IN KARIEGA SHOOTING INCIDENT] The#SAPSin the Eastern Cape, is deeply saddened to confirm the deaths of three of its members following a shooting incident in the early hours of this morning, 07/05.At approximately 00:45, police received a…pic.twitter.com/ki0p6UVXma Preliminary investigation suggests that a male constable, who was the former boyfriend of a female constable, forced entry into the residence where she and another male constable were present. “Witnesses reported hearing shots fired, after which all three members sustained fatal injuries.” Police said a state-issued firearm and 10 live rounds of ammunition were recovered at the scene. Ballistic tests will form part of the investigation.

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) has been notified and will conduct a parallel investigation, while SAPS has opened an internal disciplinary investigation. Eastern Cape police commissioner Vuyisile Ncata described the incident as a tragic and devastating loss for the SAPS family.