Niël Terblanché
A YOUNG woman from Walvis Bay was wounded in the arm when a member of the Namibian Police fired a shot at a man that attempted to escape from custody after making an appearance in the harbour town’s Magistrate’s Court.
The shooting incident occurred after the man, who attempted to escape from police custody, made an appearance in court on a charge of murder.
It is reported that the suspect requested the court orderlies at the Walvis Bay Magistrate’s Court to take him to an automatic teller machine down the road from the court building to withdraw some cash.
Eyewitnesses said that the prisoner attempted to run away from a court orderly that was accompanying him.
The police officer fired a shot in the direction of the escaping prisoner and in the process, the bullet hit a young woman, who was walking along the harbour town’s main street, in the upper left arm.
People that witnessed the incident said the prisoner was not handcuffed.
When the shot rang out the escaping prisoner stopped running and the police officer was able to re-arrest him on the spot.
After receiving first aid treatment on the spot, the young woman was transported to a local hospital for further medical treatment.
