A Durban Metro Police officer allegedly shot dead his wife before turning the gun on himself.
A Durban Metro Police officer allegedly shot dead his wife before turning the gun on himself at Illovo, south of Durban, in the early hours of Monday morning.
The couple’s 19-year-son, who is believed to have tried to intervene, suffered a gunshot wound to his arm.
This is the second gender-based violence (GBV) incident involving a Durban Metro Police officer in the past two months. Last month, officer Sizwe Ngema allegedly stabbed fellow Metro officer Bianca Khuzwayo to death. His matter is before the court.
KwaZulu-Natal provincial police spokesperson, Robert Netshiunda confirmed Monday’s incident.
“A 45-year-old man allegedly shot and killed his 40-year-old wife, shot and injured his 19-year-old son before turning the gun on himself.”
Police had opened a case of murder, attempted murder and an inquest docket, he said.
“When the police arrived at the crime scene on Thokozani Nene Road, the two bodies were found lying on the floor in the property.
“They were declared deceased at the scene. The motive for the shooting is unknown at this stage.”
A relative of the Metro officer, who did not want to be named, said the family was not ready to release the names of the couple to the media. “We are very shocked; we were not expecting something like this and we do not know what was the cause,” he said.
The son was recovering from his injury, he said. “The child had an injury to his arm and was treated and discharged on the same day (Monday).”
The couple are expected to be buried on Saturday.
Commission for Gender Equality spokesperson, Javu Baloyi, said the country had recently seen GBV cases involving police officers.
“The trend that we are seeing in the country where metro police and police officers are involved in gender-based violence is worrying.”
There was a need for more counselling programmes to assist officers to deal with psychological and other issues they faced, he said.
“It is clear that they are going through a lot but, as the commission we strongly condemn acts of GBV and police are supposed to lead by example,” said Baloyi.
TEARS Foundation, a non-profit organisation that assists survivors of GBV and rape, said there were many perpetuating factors that may contribute to someone being a perpetrator of GBV, including stress, societal expectation and unresolved generational trauma.
“Police officers have a high stress occupation, and without proper debriefing and training they are highly unlikely to be mentally equipped to process underlying feelings and emotions related to their occupation.
“Unresolved emotional trauma can manifest in unhealthy coping mechanisms, and one such manifestation can be violence towards those close to them. This is no excuse for such behaviour, however, when looking at GBV we cannot exclude such perspectives.”
The foundation said mental health prioritisation and training was especially important for those who work in a field where trauma and violence are so prominent.
The Mercury
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