COPS, DAGGA FARMERS IN FIERCE SHOOT-OUT

MANZINI – There was a fierce shoot-out between members of the Royal Swaziland Police (RSP) and suspected dagga farmers at Nsingweni during a raid of dagga fields by the police. 
The incident, which left the safety of the police in a precarious state, happened in the wee hours of Wednesday morning.

A source close to the matter said the raid of the dagga fields was conducted by a group of about 20 police officers who arrived at the fields, which are situated in the thick forests of Nsingweni, just after 4am.
He said upon arrival in the area, the police prepared their sprays and started searching for the dagga fields in the thick forests.

“While going around in the thick forests searching for the dagga fields, the dagga fields owners fired gunshots at the police and the armed officers responded by firing an undisclosed number of warning shots in the air, while those without guns ran for cover. However, the suspects did not stop firing gunshots at the officers.
“The suspects’ persistence left the police with no choice but to fire at the direction of the gunshots. Before long, the suspects stopped shooting at the police and supposedly ran away because they ran short of bullets,” the source said.
He said the shoot-out was quite intense.

The source further said the suspects were supposedly using pistols, judging from the sound of the shots, while the police were also carrying pistols and rifles.
The source said luckily, none of the about 20 officers and unknown number of suspects was injured during the skirmish and no property was damaged.

He said after failing to locate the suspects, the police continued with their operation of raiding the dagga fields and destroyed the plants by spraying the illegal herb and cutting it with bush knives and slashers.
Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Superintendent Khulani Mamba confirmed the matter.

When speaking to this publication, Mamba said police had come under heavy gunfire early on Wednesday morning, when carrying out a dagga raiding operation at Nsingweni.
He said the police were on the hunt for the suspects who engaged in a fierce gun battle with the police on Wednesday morning. Mamba said luckily none of the officers who were in the operation was injured. He said they would work with the community to apprehend the suspects.

“We have no leads at the moment but we are working closely with the community with the hope of making a breakthrough in this matter,” Mamba said.
It is worth noting that Wednesday’s dagga fields raid comes a week after a man from the same area, Nsingweni, was allegedly murdered by a mob from the area after he allegedly tried to steal dagga with his friends from one of the farmers.
It was also gathered that no arrests had been made yet despite the fact that the mob had attacked two other community members on suspicions that they were also part of the dagga theft syndicate.
One of the attacked community members is in a critical condition at the Raleigh Fitkin Memorial (RFM) Hospital while the other was sent to Dvokolwako Health Centre.

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