An early-morning struggle between an alleged housebreaker and a policeman in Fondwe in Nzhelele left the suspect dead and the policeman injured.

In the early hours of Saturday morning 1 June, community members of Fondwe woke up in the darkness to witness the end result of a battle between the policeman and the housebreaking suspect.

The policeman, the owner of the house, was awakened by noises and when he investigated he allegedly saw the suspect trying to steal his plasma television. According to a police spokesperson, the house owner noticed that the suspect had a dangerous object which he had used to gain access to the house. He allegedly used this to threaten the policeman. The policeman then took out his gun and defended himself.

According to the provincial spokesperson, Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi, whilst the policeman was trying to defend himself the suspect attacked him and a shot was fired. “The policeman, who was not on duty at the time, shot himself in the hand whilst he was fighting with the suspect," he said.

During the scuffle, more shots were fired and the suspect was shot in the thigh. "The suspect died on his way to hospital and a policeman was admitted to the provincial hospital in Polokwane," said Mulaudzi. He said that cases of attempted robbery and murder were being investigated by the independent police investigative directorate (IPID).

The dead man is alleged to have been involved in numerous cases of housebreaking, rhino poaching and robberies at businesses.  Siloam police have confirmed that the suspect was sought for questioning about 51 other crimes committed in the country and nine cases relating to robberies.