Plato condemns latest cop attacks
Western Cape MEC Dan Plato condemned the latest attack on police officers in Delft, which saw one police officer killed and another wounded.
|||Cape Town - Western Cape MEC for Community Safety Dan Plato on Monday condemned the latest attack on police officers, this time in Delft, where one officer was killed and a second wounded.
“I condemn in the strongest possible terms the attack on police officers this morning in Delft,” Plato said in a statement.
The officers, Plato said, came under fire from gunmen who according to reports, were “armed with explosives and automatic assault rifles”.
He said this was concerning because it “raises serious questions on the availability of guns in our communities and where these firearms come from”.
Plato said the shooting was “an attack on the police and an attack on the communities our officers work to keep safe”.
He said the Western Cape Government condemned cop killings as there was no “justification for the killing of police officers”.
He added: “While we have no operational control over SAPS, our government is committed to support the hard working police men and women who put their lives on the line every day to protect others.
“I wish to extend my condolences to the family, friends and fellow officers who suffer a great loss through this heinous crime committed. My thoughts and prayers are with you,” he said.
Plato said he had faith in the province’s South African Police Service (SAPS) that they would do their job in ensuring that those responsible for the shooting would “be caught and will face the full might of the law”.
He said the Western Cape Government fully supported the SAPS’ hunt for those responsible and said the Department of Community Safety’s R50 000 reward for information still stood.
“The reward is open to anyone who can assist with information that will result in the arrest and the successful conviction of those involved in the killing of police officers in the Western Cape.”
Plato called on the communities to come forth with information on the killings. “We must show a united front against these crimes. I call on law abiding residents of the province to help with information that can see the murderers be brought to justice by the police.”
African News Agency