A Durban woman is living in fear that her soldier boyfriend will come back to finish the job‚ after he gunned down her sister in a shooting rampage in Durban on Tuesday.
Speaking to The Times on Wednesday‚ one of the woman's terrified relatives‚ who asked not to be named‚ said the family had gone into hiding. The infantryman is still on the run after Tuesday's shooting spree - which was reportedly triggered by the man's belief that his girlfriend had been cheating on him.
The soldier - from 8 SA Infantry – who was clad in fully military gear‚ sprayed bullets from his R4 rifle at the girlfriend's Ntuzuma home‚ leaving her sister‚ Nokwanda‚ dead and another family member injured. He then shot another relative while he continued his search for the girlfriend‚ and also shot a police officer who was trying to arrest him.
Still in his army fatigues and body armour‚ and armed with his military-issue weapon‚ the solider disappeared into the ether.
The woman's brother‚ who did not want to be named‚ said that their family remained gripped by fear.
“We are completely traumatised and we don’t know where to go. We are stranded. We can’t go back to our home because he could strike at any time. We are living in fear‚” he said.
The man said that while police hunted for the soldier‚ the family had been called to the local police station.
“We are hoping that they will be organising some protection for us‚” he said.
He said the solider was a "nice guy" and that the attack came as a surprise.
“He was such a cool guy and he was so friendly. He was affable and we had good conversations. I didn’t see this coming at all‚” he said.
Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Thulani Zwane confirmed that the soldier was still on the run and that the investigation was ongoing.
