KZN police arrest 15-year-old pupil with firearm at school

Police in KwaZulu-Natal on Thursday arrested a 15-year-old pupil for being in illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.

Police provincial spokesperson, Brigadier Jay Naicker said the 15-year-old was arrested at Umlazi, Durban, and was placed before the Umlazi Magistrates Court where he was released into the custody of his parents.

“Police received a report of a pupil carrying a firearm at a school in U Section and immediately responded. Police officers found the pupil in possession of a revolver with three rounds of ammunition and he was immediately arrested and charged. He will also be profiled to establish if he is linked to criminal activities in the area,” Naicker said.

The KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner, Lieutenant General Khombinkosi Jula has made an appeal to parents to play a greater role in the education of their children.

“We are calling on parents to ensure that they play a pivotal role in the development of their children and to also work hand-in-hand with police. Our children are precious and they should be safe in places of learning. It is worrying when children arrive at schools with dangerous weapons and we are working with schools to conduct random searches,” he said.

On Wednesday, a 15-year-old girl had been arrested for allegedly stabbing a fellow school pupil, also aged 15, on Tuesday at a high school in Isipingo, south of Durban, police said.

This was the third reported school stabbing in as many days.

Khuselo Ndanda, 16, was stabbed to death at Hillcrest Secondary School in Mossel Bay during breaktime on Monday, allegedly by three of his classmates.

The suspects were arrested and understood to be in Grades 10-12.

In Gauteng, a 14-year-old pupil at Thuto-Tiro Comprehensive School in Sebokeng was stabbed to death by a fellow school pupil.

At the time, Gauteng education department spokesperson Steve Mabona said a pair of scissors was used to stab the pupil. A 15-year-old has since been arrested for the murder.

(Compiled by Makhosandile Zulu. Additional reporting, News24 Wire.)

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