DURBAN - COMMUNITY members in Scottsville, Pietermaritzburg, are on edge following the shooting of seven suspected criminals in the area on Tuesday night.
It is believed among those killed was a prisoner who escaped from New Prison on April 28, 2021.
The Scottsville Community Policing Forum has encouraged residents in the area to get to know their neighbours and be cautious.
Jackie Sayed, chairperson of the CPF, said it was shocking that dangerous people were living in their neighbourhood.
Sayed said knowing your neighbours gives you an opportunity to notice suspicious behaviour and alert the police.
She said this would go a long way to ensure safety and protection in communities.
“We are still shocked, the community was left in trauma about what happened. These people were living among us and this also should teach people to do away with going around minding just their own businesses and not minding who lives next to them,” she said.
She said the shooting took place within the communities and placed them at a very high risk of being hit by stray bullets.
Police spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbele said police officers from the National Intervention Unit received information about the suspects who had escaped. They proceeded to Fairfield Road in Scottsville and a vehicle was spotted entering the same premises.
When the police officers approached the gate they were met by a hail of bullets from different corners of the house. During the exchange of gunfire, seven suspects were fatally wounded.
Four pistols, a rifle, shotgun and an AK47 and large quantities of expensive cigarettes were seized, said Mbele.
Two vehicles were recovered at the scene. One was reported stolen in Thornville and the other was stolen in Pietermaritzburg last month
“Charges of attempted murder, possession of illegal firearms and ammunition and possession of the suspected stolen property were being investigated,” she added.
THE MERCURY