Police Fatally Shoot Six Armed Suspects In N2 Highway Chase

Police shot and killed six armed suspects during a high-speed chase and shootout on the N2 near Ndabakazi, outside Butterworth, Thursday, recovered firearms from the suspects’ vehicles.

Police spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Siphokazi Mawisa, confirms that members of the National Intervention Unit received intelligence about two vehicles carrying firearms from Cofimvaba. “Officers spotted the vehicles near Cofimvaba and attempted to stop them, but the suspects sped off and so the chase leader, and police called for backup,” Mawisa said.

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Meanwhile, the pursuit ended between Ndabakazi and Butterworth when the suspects opened fire on the police. Officers returned fire, fatally wounding six suspects “in a way that causes death”. Authorities have referred the case to the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) for further investigation.

Same day the shootout happened, after the South African Police Service (SAPS) destroyed thousands of illegal firearms and ammunition in Vanderbijlpark. During SAPS’ second firearm destruction operation of the 2024/2025 financial year, officers destroyed at least 16,049 firearms. These included 12,502 handguns, 1,921 rifles, 1,305 shotguns, and 47 combination firearms.

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Also, Major General Nonkululeko Phokane disclosed that, SAPS has destroyed 279,594 firearms and firearm parts over the past six years. Officers had seized many of these weapons during operations, and the state had forfeited them. Some firearms were linked to resolved cases involving violence against women and children, as well as cash-in-transit (CIT) robberies. Others were voluntarily surrendered or handed in during amnesty periods.

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