Role of honour for 39 police officers who died in line of duty in crime-plagued South Africa

30 Aug 2024

A total of 39 police officers were killed in the line of duty in South Africa between April 2023 and May 2024. Some, like Sergeant Kedimetse Masilo, were killed at active crime scenes, while others were killed in accidents while they worked.

Mokgweetsi Masilo described his sister, Sergeant Kedimetse Masilo, as a “provider… she loved the police job, she was doing it with passion and she didn’t want anything else.” On Sunday 1 September, Sergeant Kedimetse Masilo will be honoured by fellow officers and police leadership after dying in the line of duty.

A total of 39 police officers were killed in the line of duty in South Africa between April 2023 and May 2024. On Sunday, all of them will be honoured in a ceremony attended by their families, senior police leadership, Deputy President Paul Mashatile and the Police Ministry.

Mokgweetsi Masilo will be the sole representative of the family on Sunday, to hear speeches and watch his sister’s name be engraved on to the South African Police Service (SAPS) memorial wall at the Union Buildings in the honour of the police officers who died in the line of duty.

Sergeant Masilo (45) died on 22 August 2023. She worked for the SAPS for 16 years. She was attached to the Flying Squad in Kimberley in the Northern Cape. She was killed along with her flying squad partner Constable Okaetse Mandindi while tracing a stolen vehicle in Kimberley.

The man charged with the murders of two Kimberly Flying Squad officers, Daniel Wilfred Alberts (38), was making his appearance at the Kimberley Magistrate’s Court last year.

Psychiatric patient

According to News24, Alberts was arrested later the same day of the murder, and first appeared in court on 24 August 2023. During his first appearance, Alberts indicated that he was a psychiatric patient who had been admitted to 27 institutions. The case is ongoing.

Sergeant Masilo’s brother Mokgweetsi told Daily Maverick this week that: “She is my younger sister but she was like an elder to us. She passed on during her birth month.”

He explained that his sister had become a mother figure to him and the Masilo family after their mother died in 2022.

“We struggled because a year before her death we lost our mother, so she was replacing our mother. She was closing that gap of losing our mom. Even after her death (Sergeant Masilo), we can still see that there is a hole that she is missing in our household,” he said.

Masilo described his sister as “bubbly”. He said of his sister: “The young ones at home were expecting a lot from her because she was always asking them what they wanted, and she would get them what they wanted.”

Masilo left behind two children, aged 21 and 27.

“With her children, the young one is not working and the older one is trying to make ends meet, but they are not where (she) wanted them to be because they are still struggling,” he said.

“She was a provider. She loved the police job, she was doing it with passion and she didn’t want anything else.”

Parliament’s police committee chairperson Ian Cameron told Daily Maverick that the officers’ deaths should not be in vain, and referred to the killings as crimes against the state.

“We should cherish the sacrifices that these police officers have made, especially in the context of the horrific circumstances under which they work, and it is critical that we do more to support SAPS officers to do their work effectively,” said Cameron.

Roll call of officers who died

Some of the police officers who died were killed in accidents while at crime scenes, while some were killed during shootouts with alleged suspects.

Speaking on the deaths of the 39 officers, SAPS spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe told Daily Maverick that: ‘‘The death of one officer is one death too many – we are 39 officers poorer because of dangerous and callous criminals who have no regard for life. We continue to urge our communities and key stakeholders to work closely to ensure we rid our communities of these hardened criminals. We are encouraged that we are able to ensure the successful conviction of police killers. The safety and security of our police officers is a priority concern to management.’’

The names of all 39 police officers who died, listed by death date and then rank and initials and surname:

Sergeant ZV Mamba

Sergeant S Mbonani

Sergeant MI Morake

Sergeant LL Bunga

Sergeant MA Nel

Constable KA Lefaka

Constable SS Ncala

Sergeant L Shikwambana

Constable KB Mohase

Sergeant LP Maja

Warrant Officer CJ Du Rand

Sergeant ES Mkhize

Sergeant SS Madondo

Constable AX Dudumayo

Warrant Officer GM Diphephenyane

Constable SZP Thango

Captain MD Nkuna

Constable MI Mthana

Sergeant W Moruane

Lt Colonel FN Mathipa

Sergeant VE Siwela.

Constable OG Mandindi

Sergeant KM Masilo

Sergeant L Thathaisa

Sergeant HN Makobe

Warrant Officer DD Morris

Warrant Officer SN Mazibuko

Sergeant MA Kutu

Constable SB Cele

Constable MM Maphoro

Sergeant RI Adam

Captain M Mantshiyose

Warrant Officer BM Ndhobe

Warrant Officer GD Cele

Constable NI Zuma

Sergeant S Tatani-Nkomo

Constable SO Makhathini

Captain BL Mvundlela

Sergeant SS Khoza. DM

These officers were due to be remembered at a commemoration ceremony at the Union Buildings on Sunday 1 Septemer.

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South Africa

Psychiatric patient

Roll call of officers who died

The names of all 39 police officers who died, listed by death date and then rank and initials and surname: