Bheki Cele says eNgcobo suspects have confessed to cop killings

Newly appointed Police Minister Bheki Cele has revealed that the police have extracted confessions from the surviving suspects involved in the killing of five police officers last week at eNgcobo in the Eastern Cape.

He was delivering his first statement as the minister in parliament, having yesterday addressed a memorial service for the officers.

Cele had thanked the police for a job well done after confronting the suspects that attacked and killed five officers and an off-duty soldier. At least six suspects were arrested over the weekend, while it was reported that seven were killed in a bloody gun battle with the police.

A task team is investigating the attack, which is allegedly linked to members of a cult church in the area.

Cele has told police officers to use their weapons and defend themselves against criminals, saying the law allows police to use every applicable force when faced with a dangerous situation.

His words echo his infamous “shoot to kill” policy when he was national police commissioner, which has drawn criticism from human rights groups and opposition parties.

He also pledged support for the children of the fallen officers and said they must be afforded quality education. He expressed concern at the possibility of churches hiding criminal activity and said the police will profile some churches.

“Some churches are feeding people snakes. We are going to profile these churches, please don’t regard us as being opposed to religion. We are not fighting churches but we want churches that are places of worship and not be used as smoke screen for other purposes like what happened here,” said Cele.