Richards Bay - A group of heavily armed men shot dead five people and wounded another two at the Vulindlela shopping complex in KwaDlangezwa near Empangeni, just west of Richards Bay on Friday night, KwaZulu-Natal police said.
"It is alleged that a group of thugs approached the supermarket [at about 7.20pm] and opened fire at security guards and others who were in the vicinity," Lt-Col Thulani Zwane said on Saturday.
"They stole an undisclosed amount of cash before fleeing scene. When police arrived they found a vehicle suspected to be used by the criminals idling at the scene," he said.
Among the people who died were two security guards on duty at the complex and an innocent bystander sitting in his vehicle. The supermarket owners were not injured during the robbery. Cases of murder, attempted murder, and robbery were opened at Mthunzini police station for further investigation, Zwane said.
KwaZulu-Natal acting police commissioner Maj- Gen Bheki Langa condemned the attack.
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“These criminals are merciless and killed innocent people because of their greed. We have tasked seasoned detectives to investigate this case and bring the perpetrators to book.
"We urge the community at large not to panic and rather direct their anger towards assisting investigators with information that will lead to the arrest of these heartless thugs,” he said.