Off-duty cop shot during armed robbery

Three armed robbers fled with a police pistol after they shot and wounded an off-duty officer during a robbery in Silverton on Tuesday afternoon.

The Protection and Security Services (PSS) police officer was disarmed when he put his life on the line in an attempt to stop a robbery. The robbers had attacked a scrap metal dealership in Waltloo in the afternoon, police spokesperson Captain Colette Weilbach said.

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“Three armed men robbed a 44-year-old scrap metal dealer in front of his business… An off-duty Constable based at the PSS in Denneboom saw the incident and allegedly tried to apprehend the suspects,” she said.

The officer was shot twice in the leg and once in the stomach before the robbers fled in a white Toyota Corolla with his service pistol and a cellphone.

The officer was taken to a nearby hospital, Weilbach said.

“It is suspected that the scrap metal dealer was followed from the bank after he withdrew cash. Silverton police are investigating an attempted murder and armed robbery.”

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