Cape Town – Scores of mourners turned up to
pay their last respects to slain police
officer André Kay at the Durbanville
Memorial Park Hall.
The funeral of Kay, 54, on Saturday was attended by family, friends, colleagues and Bishop Lavis residents.
It followed the SAPS memorial service held for him last week.
Yesterday, a community open-air memorial was also hosted by the Community Policing Forum.
Kay, a lieutenant-colonel attached to the provincial firearms, liquor and second-hand goods control unit, was off-duty when he was shot on November 14 outside his home in Bishop Lavis. He had been in the service for 32 years.
Kay’s family said unknown gunmen hid next to his front fence at about 6.30am and waited for him.
While Kay was reversing his car out of the driveway, a man approached him and shot him through the window, hitting him in the head and upper body.
His bullet-riddled body was found by his 81-year-old mother minutes after she heard the gunshots.
About 10 cartridges were found at the scene, five of them inside the car. Nothing was taken.
Kay’s niece, Kim Kay, said the family were comforted by the “richness and profoundness” of his work.
“We haven’t really had time to mourn him because of all the arrangements leading to his funeral. He was a people’s person and being a police officer was the only thing he knew.
“It was more than just a job for him. We are hoping that by the end of this month, the people behind this will be arrested. Knowing they are in prison will bring some kind of closure to the family,” she said.
Paying tribute to Kay, deputy
provincial commissioner general
Mpumelelo Manci said: “We thank Colonel Kay for a life dedicated to a noble cause of protecting and serving the communities in the province.
"You were diligent and served with dignity and integrity. Your dedication and commitment to your duties was remarkable and highly appreciated.”
Anyone with information can anonymously contact Crime Stop at 08600 10111 or SMS Crime Line at 32211.