Lawyer Questions Lack Of Police Injuries In Alleged Shootouts With Armed Robbers
Lawyer Tinomudaishe Chinyoka has queried why there are no reported injuries among police officers during alleged shootouts with suspected armed robbers.
Chinyoka’s comments follow a statement from Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi on Monday, which detailed the shooting of two armed robbery suspects during a confrontation with detectives in a bushy area between Mpilo Hospital and Richmond, Bulawayo, on Sunday.
While Chinyoka said that he does not wish for police officers to be harmed during such encounters, he finds the pattern troubling.
He suggested that suspects may be “executed” by police, either for refusing to share the “loot” or to eliminate the suspects after sharing the proceeds of their crime with the police. Chinyoka posted on X:
How come in these shootouts no policeman is ever injured? Not praying for that mind, but why do we still have armed robbers when they are so bad at using the arms?
Or, are we just executing people at “indications” when they refuse to share their loot? Or when they actually do share? Witnesses, after all, are inconvenient.
An X user responded to Chinyoka: “You have no idea what you are campaigning for. If a robber holds you at gunpoint once, you will realise how stupid it is to get soft on those guys.”
However, Chinyoka reiterated his position, stating that the killings were indeed suspicious. He said:
Wait until a member of your family is accused of being a robber and shot during “a shootout” and come back here to pontificate.
Another X user expressed his support for Police actions saying:
To be honest no one should care about armed robbers, they should be killed immediately on the crime scene, l was once a victim of these armed robbers, so l big up our police for these.
However, one Patrick Zuva condemned the “extrajudicial killings” of suspects by police. He said:
Unfortunately, this is what has become of our law enforcement agencies and judicial systems. Highly corrupt and a law unto themselves, empowered and cheered on by a government and ruling party lacking a moral compass (Chris Mutsvangwa’a press conference from yesterday).
More: Pindula News
