SAPS Officer Shoots Dead Colleague at Lesbian Event

Johannesburg — South Africa's independent police watchdog has launched an investigation into the fatal shooting of an off-duty Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) officer, who was allegedly killed by a colleague using a state-issued service firearm early Sunday morning.

The incident occurred in the Glenridge Extension 16 area of Soweto during the early hours of June 28, following an apparent domestic dispute at a lesbian event within the locality.

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) says the suspect, a female JMPD officer who was also off duty at the time, had been attending the lesbian event when a dispute arose between her and her girlfriend.

The suspect reportedly contacted the victim, a fellow JMPD officer, requesting intervention in the argument with her girlfriend.

Upon the deceased colleague's arrival, the accused officer's girlfriend got into her car and drove off.

"When the colleague arrived at the event venue, the accused's partner got inside the deceased's car and they drove away," IPID spokesperson Lizzy Suping said in an official statement detailing the preliminary findings.

As the vehicle departed the venue, the suspect allegedly opened fire on the car with her service pistol, striking and fatally wounding her colleague.

Emergency medical personnel dispatched to the scene certified the targeted officer dead on impact.

Investigators recovered a 9mm pistol, alongside spent cartridges and live ammunition, at the scene of the shooting.

Following her arrest, the suspect was transported to Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, where blood samples were drawn to conduct an alcohol limit evaluation.

The suspect is currently being held at the Moroka Police Cells. She is scheduled to make her initial appearance before the Protea Magistrate's Court today, Tuesday, June 30, where she faces formal charges of murder.