This is according to the provincial police spokesperson, Motantsi Makhele, adding that apart from that one death, quite a number of police officers have been attacked and injured while on duty. 

This as Police Safety Month is aimed at raising awareness about police safety and the commemoration of police officers who have died while on duty.

Makhele explains that on Friday 18 September 2020, police will walk along certain national routes within Bloemfontein to all police stations in this city, aiming to raise awareness to community members and appeal to them to contribute positively towards the safety of police officers on duty. 

He explains that factors contributing to these police attacks and killings, include when police officers attend to complaints certain people become violent and retaliate by stabbing and/or verbally attacking them, in the end, resulting in the police officer getting killed or injured.

It was previously reported that a 41-year-old policeman, Lloyd Poonyane, from Viljoenskroon in the Free State, was gunned down while on duty in Orkney in the North West earlier this year. The six other officers who were with him at the time of the incident were also injured. The incident happened during an argument between the police officers and the suspects who had allegedly robbed a tuck shop in Orkney near Kanana Township outside Klerksdorp before the incident. The six police officers who were injured are amongst many others who have also been attacked and injured while on duty in the province.

OFM News/Marvin Ntsena