Two suspects have been taken into custody after constable Siyabonga Thango was fatally shot in the line of duty while responding to a business robbery in Vosloorus on Friday, July 21.

According to South African Police Spokesperson Bragadier Athlenda Mathe, the 32-year-old Constable Thango was among a group of crime prevention officers that were responding to a business robbery when he was fatally shot by armed suspects. “At the time of his death, he had five years’ service, having joined the organization in 2018,” said Brigadier Mathe.

Brigadier Mathe added that the investigating team mobilized all resources to apprehend his killers. “On Sunday morning, the team followed up on information about the whereabouts of the killers; police pounced on them, and a shootout ensued in Vosloorus. Two suspects, aged 27 and 29, were arrested, and three firearms were recovered. The 27-year-old suspect later succumbed to his injuries in the hospital, concluded Mathe.

SAPS National Commissioner, General Fannie Masemola, thanked Constable Thango for his bravery, loyalty, and the sacrifice he made to serve and protect the people of his beloved country. “Those behind the attacks and killing of police officers must receive the maximum prison sentence as these killings are an attack on the authority of the state.”