AN EASTERN Cape police captain shot himself in the hand and stomach when a pistol he was inspecting discharged in front of his colleagues.
The incident occurred yesterday morning in the provincial firearms building near the East London Zoo.
An ambulance was called and the 49-year-old unidentified captain was rushed to an undisclosed East London hospital in a critical condition.
Provincial police spokeswoman Brigadier Marinda Mills said the incident occurred at 11am.
“At this stage it is unclear exactly what happened but preliminary indications are that the officer was in the process of checking and auditing firearms destined for destruction when a cable tie holding a number of firearms together snapped and a shot from one of the firearms went off,” Mills said.
She continued: “The officer is in the ICU unit of an East London hospital. From where we are standing it was an accident and not an attempted suicide but a formal investigation is still continuing.”
Mills said an inquest docket had been opened. The captain was stationed at the firearm section of the provincial head office.
When the Dispatch visited the scene, a Dynamic Emergency Service ambulance was stationed outside the police offices in Beaconsfield Road with paramedics administering first-aid.
Dynamic spokesman Werner Bester said: “We immediately attended to the scene when a call came through saying a police officer had been shot, at that stage we did not know if it was through crime or accidental.
“The story we received at the scene was that the officer was busy going through firearms when one firearm accidentally discharged and shot him in the hand and stomach leaving an exit wound from his back.” — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
Cop shoots himself while inspecting firearms
The incident occurred yesterday morning in the provincial firearms building near the East London Zoo.
An ambulance was called and the 49-year-old unidentified captain was rushed to an undisclosed East London hospital in a critical condition.
Provincial police spokeswoman Brigadier Marinda Mills said the incident occurred at 11am.
“At this stage it is unclear exactly what happened but preliminary indications are that the officer was in the process of checking and auditing firearms destined for destruction when a cable tie holding a number of firearms together snapped and a shot from one of the firearms went off,” Mills said.
She continued: “The officer is in the ICU unit of an East London hospital. From where we are standing it was an accident and not an attempted suicide but a formal investigation is still continuing.”
Mills said an inquest docket had been opened. The captain was stationed at the firearm section of the provincial head office.
When the Dispatch visited the scene, a Dynamic Emergency Service ambulance was stationed outside the police offices in Beaconsfield Road with paramedics administering first-aid.
Dynamic spokesman Werner Bester said: “We immediately attended to the scene when a call came through saying a police officer had been shot, at that stage we did not know if it was through crime or accidental.
“The story we received at the scene was that the officer was busy going through firearms when one firearm accidentally discharged and shot him in the hand and stomach leaving an exit wound from his back.” — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
Would you like to comment on this article?
Register (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Trending Now
Latest Videos