Eastern Cape police officer dies from virus

The SA Police Service is in mourning following the loss of two of its  members due to  Covid-19.

One of the members is an Eastern Cape officer,  but the national commissioner’s  spokesperson,   Brigadier Vishnu Naidoo,  said at the request of the families they would not release the names of the deceased or their stations.

“In the Eastern Cape, a captain succumbed to the virus on Monday May 11. The captain had 29 years of service having joined the organisation in 1991 also as a student constable.”

In KwaZulu-Natal, a 55-year-old warrant officer succumbed to the virus on April 26.

The officer served for 27 years, having joined the organisation as a student constable in 1993.

National commissioner General Khehla John Sitole has described the two members as brave and exemplary.

“On behalf of the entire SAPS family, I would like to personally pay tribute to the two members who placed their lives on the line to ensure that the people of SA are protected against crime as well as against this virus,” Sitole said.

“I have also conveyed my sincere condolences to the families of our fallen colleagues and thanked them for the decades the members have served in the SAPS as well as for allowing them to serve during these trying times.”

Naidoo said more than 370 members had tested positive for Covid-19 with the majority of those cases in the Western Cape.

“With that said, it is encouraging that 55 members have recovered from the virus, giving us hope that this disease can be beaten.”

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