Member of the special task force at the scene where seven suspects linked to the eNgcobo massacre were killed in a police shootout. Image: Simphiwe Nkwali, Sunday Times.
On Friday night at Nyanga village near eNgcobo, Eastern Cape, seven suspects linked to the eNgcobo police station massacre were shot dead in a gunfight with a special task force that was assembled to hunt down the cop killers.
According to reports, three of the suspects were Mancoba brothers, whose late father, Siphiwo Mancoba, is the founder of Mancoba Seven Angels Ministries, a church which police minister Fikile Mbalula described as satanic.
This, after six police officers from eNgcobo police station and a retired soldier were killed in an attack by a group of heavily armed men in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
It is reported that the suspects robbed the station of ten firearms, killed three police officers at the scene and fled in a police van hijacked from two policemen, who were later found dead six kilometers from the station.
The police van was found abandoned a few kilometers from the station. According to Herald Live, a sixth police officer, who was wounded in the attack, died later in hospital.
The suspects allegedly also robbed an ATM a short distance from the station on the day of the massacre.
Following the attack, a task team was assembled to hunt down the suspects. The team, comprising the Hawks, Detectives, Crime Intelligence, the Task Force, National Intervention Unit and the Tactical Response Team is said to have followed a tip-off on Friday evening of a possible gang that was responsible for the attack. The team eventually cornered the suspects in their hideout at Mancoba Seven Angels Ministries church. A gun battle then ensued, leaving seven suspects dead and one member of the task force injured in the leg.
The firearms stolen by the suspects from the police station are said to have been recovered. Ten suspects were arrested and are expected to appear in court on Monday. Others managed to escape and are still being hunted.
