Fri, 07 Sep 2012 13:57:38 +0000
Police officers in Kaoma have been accused of shielding criminals that were terrorizing them and breaking into their offices.
Residents told the Daily Nation that some officers were aiding criminals that were breaking and stealing from offices apart from killing innocent people.
A resident Mr Chonde said crime incidents in the area had increased because criminals were operating with impunity because officers who were supposed to protect the citizens were instead turning a blind eye to the criminal activities.
Last week, he said, some criminals broke into the Zampost offices after striking the watchman with a hammer. They tried to steal money from the cashier’s office but the guard who survived the assault sounded the alarm which led to the arrest of some suspects.
Surprisingly, he said the suspects were released from custody by police officers in very unclear circumstances “this has brought fear among innocent people.”
The residents have since accused police officers of covering up for criminals and that it would appear the officers were working hand in hand with the criminals.
The community was traumatised by the incident and were very suspicious of police intentions said the decision to construct a police post at the Post Office was a cover up to ensure that people did not report that the suspects who were trying to steal from the Post Office have been released.
And a police officer who sought anonymity told the Daily Nation that members of the public were saddened by the activities by some of his workmates on the way they treated the suspects.
The officer said it was unfortunate that even innocent officers who did not know what happened on that particular evening were being implicated.
He described as sad the event because it was not the first time that the Post office was under being attacked.
The officer said a similar incident occurred in 2010 were over K50 million was stolen but investigations have not yield positive results.
And a senior officer at the Post Office confirmed the two incidents.
