A police detective was attacked with a panga during an armed robbery in the early hours of Sunday morning in Wanaheda, Windhoek. The incident is one of several serious crimes reported across the country over the weekend, many involving large financial losses and increasing violence.
According to a police statement, the detective had just dropped off a colleague at Green Mountain Street in Goreangab at around 02h00 when he was confronted by three suspects. One of them was reportedly armed with a panga. The detective drew his service pistol and fired warning shots before shooting one of the suspects in the leg. However, he ran out of ammunition and was forced to flee to seek help from the colleague he had dropped off moments earlier.
By the time he returned, the injured suspect had been picked up by another man in a sedan. The group made off with a bag containing police equipment, including a camera and charger, a torch, car keys, and the detective’s personal mobile phone. Two suspects, both aged 23, were arrested shortly after, but the third man is still at large, and no stolen property has been recovered.
In Walvis Bay, police are investigating the theft and destruction of State property, after suspects stole copper wires from 10 NamWater borehole transformers at Kuisebmond River. The damage is estimated at over N$660 000. The suspects remain unidentified, and no arrests have been made.
In Windhoek’s Klein Windhoek area, a man was threatened with a panga and robbed of two iPhones, an iPad and cash, with a total value of N$23 600. The suspect fled in what police believe was a waiting taxi. Investigations are ongoing.