The Star reports that a fatal shooting outside the closed Lily Mine in Barberton, Mpumalanga, has raised suspicion that illegal miners have invaded it.
Mpumalanga police spokesperson Brigadier Leonard Hlathi said on Monday that a man died after being shot during a gun battle with police outside the mine. Another man who was wounded was hospitalised. Police arrested two suspects, who were due to appear in court on Tuesday. Hlathi said the shooting had been preceded by some high drama the previous day, involving accomplices and security guards at the mine. The guards had arrested a man with a high-calibre firearm, but were later confronted with a group of armed men who manhandled them and released the suspect. Police operations got under way there from Saturday and on Sunday a gunfight ensued in which two people were wounded, one of whom died. Police suspect the men were trying to gain access to Lily Mine for illegal mining. The gold mine has been closed since the April 2016 incident that claimed the lives of three workers.
- Read this report by Bongani Nkosi in full at The Star
- See too, Illegal miners remanded in custody over Lily Mine shoot-out, at SABC News
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page