A 29-year-old South African National Defence Force (SANDF) member is facing an attempted murder charge for allegedly shooting and wounding a 27-year-old civilian during an argument over the wearing of a face mask.
The incident happened on Thursday at a shopping complex in the town of Mogwadi, north-west of Polokwane.
Police spokesperson Motlafela Mojapelo says the civilian has been admitted to hospital.
“The police in Mogwadi in the Capricorn District have arrested a 29 year old member of the SANDF for allegedly shooting a 27 year old man during an argument that reportedly resulted form the non wearing of face mask. The soldier will appear appear in Morebeng Magistrate’s Court on Friday morning facing a charge of attempted murder.”
Meanwhile, in August, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said it wanted answers from Defence Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula about what the party refers to as ‘flip-flopping’ over a South African National Defence Force report on the death of Collins Khosa in Alexandra, allegedly at the hands of soldiers.
This follows the Military Ombud’s finding that soldiers acted improperly, irregularly, and in contravention of their code of conduct.
In the video below, Collins Khosa’s family reacted to the report:
In July, police were investigating circumstances surrounding the death of Eunicent Dilebo (36) at the hands of South African National Defence Force (SANDF) members in Dingledale, Mpumalanga.
Dilebo was allegedly shot and killed over the weekend when soldiers and police were apparently responding to a mob justice incident in the area.
At that time, it was alleged that the deceased and his girlfriend Ntombifuthi Mlambo were seated in their vehicle when they were accosted by SANDF members.
In the video below, SANDF members were accused of killing a 37-year-old man in Bushbuckridge:
