Man killed by train while fleeing police
A man, believed to be in his 30s, jumped in front of a train near Clairwood railway station in an attempt to avoid authorities on Monday, 7 October.
Montclair SAP’s Cst A Maphumulo and N Dazana were conducting a routine patrol in Maharaj Road at about 7am, when they noticed a man carrying a black metal plate on his head. The man had five other plates on the side of the road. When they questioned the man as to the source of the plates, he said a security guard at a demolition site in Rossburgh had given him permission to take them.
The man dropped the plate and took off towards Clairwood train station after police wanted him to accompany them to the site to verify the information. Police followed hot on his heels when the man jumped over the fence onto the railway line. Since the van was unable to enter the tracks, they watched from a distance as the man jumped in front of an oncoming train. When Cst Maphumulo and Dazana reached the man, he was still alive but he died a few minutes later before emergency services arrived on the scene.
The man was identified by a relative. It was discovered the plates had been stolen from Makro in Edwin Swales Drive.
– mbalim@dbn.caxton.co.za
