Mhlaba Memela

Mhlaba Memela

An off-duty policeman, who fixes police cars for a living, put his life on the line when he intervened as two armed criminals attacked and robbed a young man.

"I'm a policeman after all. I chose this job because of dedication," Inspector Manqoba Ngobese, of the Durban Central Auxilliary Garage, told Sowetan yesterday.

"The fact that I have never worked in the field does not take away my resolve to protect the community from thugs."

Ngobese saw two criminals strangling the young man while he was strolling with his friends in Ladysmith in northern KwaZulu-Natal at the weekend.

"People were not helping the young man. Instead, they all walked past because the suspects had knives," he said.

Police spokesman Captain Charmaine Struwig said Ngobese's bravery was an inspiration.

"Inspector Ngobese and his friends did not hesitate to tackle the suspects after they witnessed the crime incident. They traced the other suspects to a nearby block. And one of them was subsequently arrested and the stolen stuff recovered," she said.

Struwig said it was amazing that even though Ngobese was off duty and operating outside of his normal scope of work, he had made a contribution to the fight against crime.

Ngobese's colleague, Michael Hlambelo, said: "After training, we were posted to the garage. We have never arrested anyone but what he has done has encouraged us all."