Swazi Observer

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WE DIDNâ€™T SHOOT EPIC GIG TEEN - POLICE

By Sifiso Nhlabatsi | 2019-07-06

Police have opened a case of attempted murder following the shooting incident at Mavuso Trade Centre in the early hours of Sunday morning.

A 19-year-old girl who is a pupil in one of the schools around Manzini region, was shot and seriously injured when fun-lovers went on a riot when well-known South African singer Mlindo The Vocalist cut short his performance, owing to a power outage that left the stage totally dark.

The artist was rescued from the overly excited mob of fans by police, who whisked him out to safety, leaving behind rowdy hooligans who took advantage of the situation.

This forced the police to fire rubber bullets and teargas canisters to disperse the crowd. In that skirmish, the 19-year-old was shot in the back by what was suspected to have been a stray bullet.

The girl had a bullet lodged into her body and was admitted to RFM Hospital where she spent the whole week while doctors tried to extract the bullet. Our sister paper, the daily Observer, reported that because the bullet was close to her heart the injured pupil had to be transferred to the Republic of South Africa for an operation to extract the bullet.

The parents of the young girl have been left with so many unanswered questions on what happened to their daughter as they alleged that the police have not briefed them about the incident. Unconfirmed reports were that the alleged that the teen had been shot by the police during the skirmish.

However, the police have cleared their name saying they are not responsible for the shooting incident. Yesterday a group of police officers, including Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Superintendent Phindile Vilakati, conducted an inspection in loco of the crime scene. Police officers who are investigating the case explained what happened on the day and went on to state that they have since opened a case of attempted murder.

Vilakati said as the police, the information they have is that soon after the lights went out at the main venue, the teenager together with her friends left the venue which was placed where car spinning shows are usually held and went near the stadium entrance.

She said while standing next to the entrance, a fight ensued between two revellers. During the fight one of the people involved is alleged to have drawn a gun and fired shots. The girl is suspected to have been hit by a stray bullet. Vilakati said the teenager left the scene where there was a fight and as she was leaving she complained that she wasn’t feeling well and at that moment it was discovered that she had been shot. During the inspection in loco, blood stains could be spotted on the wall where the young lady is believed to have been standing when she was shot. The police mouthpiece said a charge of attempted murder has since been opened with the police. She further said that police are looking for the suspect who fired a gun during the fight. The police mouthpiece also distanced the police from the accident saying they were nowhere near the scene (where she was shot). She said the police were busy controlling the rowdy crowd at the venue. It was also gathered that it was not only the young woman who was hurt but also others who were involved in the fight. The young girl told our sister paper that she fell to the ground when she realised that something was wrong, only discovering later that she had been shot.

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