Police shoot to death two suspects

Police in Mzuzu have killed two suspected armed robbers who were allegedly trying to escape arrest.

Northern Region Police deputy spokesperson Maurice Chapola yesterday confirmed the shooting, but declined to identify the suspects and what crimes they had committed.

He said the two, who are suspected to have been part of a gang that terrorised parts of the Northern Region, were shot dead at Zolozolo in the city where police had received information that they were hiding.

Said Chapola: “Police on Monday were investigating a serious crime that the two are suspected to have been part of. Instead of cooperating with the police investigations, the two suspects started running away; hence, police opened fire to stop them.”

He could not reveal the part of the body where the two were shot, saying investigations were underway.

“All I can tell you is we were investigating a serious crime. We shot at them to disable them. But they were, however, pronounced dead at Mzuzu Central Hospital due to loss of blood. Police followed all procedures in the use of firearms,” said Chapola.

Northern Region Police spokesperson Peter Kalaya could also not give details on the matter, saying he was out of office for other duties.

However, a source who sought anonymity, said the two were part of a gang that terrorised Mzuzu and some parts of the North where they robbed filling stations and supermarkets of millions of kwacha. One of their targets was a filling station in Nkhata Bay where they went away with over K20 million.

Police earlier arrested members of the gang before invading their hideout.

“They were behind a series of roberries in Mzuzu and some parts. They have in the past weeks been terrorising the region and they were among the most wanted robbers,” said the source.