DURBAN, KwaZulu-Natal — Three suspects were shot dead by police in the KwaBester area near Ntuzuma, north-west of Durban, following an armed confrontation during a targeted law enforcement operation. The incident has intensified an ongoing manhunt for two additional suspects who fled the scene.
According to KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Colonel Amanda Funani, officers were actively searching for wanted individuals in the Ntuzuma area when they approached a residence where five suspects were hiding. Upon noticing the police presence, the suspects opened fire, prompting officers to retaliate in self-defense.
Three of the suspects, aged between 20 and 23, were fatally wounded in the exchange of gunfire. The remaining two managed to escape the residence and are currently at large, with police continuing active search operations in the surrounding vicinity.
Colonel Funani confirmed that the deceased suspects were wanted for serious crimes, including murder, armed robberies, and firearms-related offenses in the eThekwini and surrounding areas. Authorities recovered three firearms at the scene, which will be submitted for comprehensive ballistic testing to link them to prior criminal activities.
In a separate incident within the eThekwini municipality, emergency response teams dealt with a retaining wall collapse at the Nazareth Baptist Church in the eBhutini village of Inanda. The structural failure occurred shortly after 12:00.
Before formal rescue teams could arrive on the scene, church members swiftly intervened, rushing approximately eight trapped individuals to nearby medical facilities. Two of the individuals sustained critical injuries, while six others suffered minor injuries and were treated at a local clinic around 15:00.
Rescue operations, which included the deployment of sniffer dogs and Tractor Loader Backhoes (TLBs) to assist with the heavy debris, continued from midday until 15:00. Officials have since cleared the area, confirming that no further individuals remain trapped under the rubble of the approximately 5-meter-long wall that was under construction.
Police have urged community members with any information regarding the whereabouts of the two fleeing suspects to come forward or contact local law enforcement immediately.
