Tears flowed freely at the memorial service of slain police officer Thembeleni Kuboni in Pimville, Soweto, on Wednesday.
The Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) and Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) laid wreaths at the spot where Kuboni had taken his last breath.
Metro officers also held a parade down Chris Hani Road, with some on horses and others on motorbikes and in cars.
Kuboni, a metro police officer, was gunned down early one morning last Tuesday on his way to work.
Metro police chief Chris Ngcobo promised that his killers would be found and brought to book.
“The police will do their job to the best of their abilities, and no one must take the law into their own hands,” said Ngcobo.
He said he was satisfied with the investigation so far and expected results soon.
Member of the mayoral committee for safety in the City of Joburg, Matshidiso Mfikoe, said
: “He was one of us and we need to sort out the mystery so that they (killers) can be punished.”
Mfikoe said she doubted very much that no one had not seen anything during the metro cop’s slaying.
“Police members also need to be protected, and those with relevant information must come forward with that information,” she said.
Residents interviewed said the father of six had been a kind man who loved children.
A woman who would not be named said she had heard the gunshots that ended Kuboni’s life.
“Boom! Boom! Boom! I heard the gunshots and jumped out of bed and peered out of my window. I was so scared, I did not know what to expect after that,” she said.
The woman said she did not feel safe in her neighbourhood after the shooting.
“The killers could be anyone and I won’t feel safe until they find those responsible for Thembeleni’s murder,” she said.
They could have been at the memorial service and nobody would have known, she added.
Ernest, Thembeleni’s younger brother, spoke on behalf of his family and said they would move on only once his brother’s killers were behind bars.
“My brother was in the prime of his life and we expected that this past weekend we were all going to spend time together.
“However, these murderers have denied us this,” he said.
Only his second wife, Nobantu, was present at the memorial service. Patricia, Thembeleni’s first wife, was in KwaZulu-Natal.
The Star