KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner, Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi has clapped back at critics who have labelled the police as a vigilante group.
Speaking on the sidelines of a recent take-down operation in Durban's Point area where six extortion suspects were fatally wounded, Mkhwanazi said the naysayers are in the minority.
"I wouldn't want to argue much with those who call us vigilante groups. Our (job) is law enforcement and we are going to protect them as well. They can call us vigilante groups, but if their lives are under threat, we are going to protect them," he said.
Referring to a recent commemoration ceremony where police management honoured the 39 officers killed in the line of duty during the last financial year, Mkhwanazi said officers put their lives on the line daily.
He said police take courage in the fact that those labelling officers as vigilantes are a minority.
"The public, in general, is quite appreciative of the work we do," he said.
Mkhwanazi said the six killed on Tuesday were responsible for several murders in the province and in the area where they lived.
"If you go and interview the community in that area, the majority of them will be excited that at least the people who were terrorising them are no longer around," he said.
He added that while it was not good that the youngsters died, they are no longer terrorising the community - and that makes the public happy with police.
"We will continue to do that, as long as we operate within the law, we are not going to stop," he said.
IOL previously reported that some believe police are well within their rights to defend themselves, especially when faced with ruthless criminals using high-calibre firearms, while others believe officers are acting outside the bounds of the law.
Police watchdog, Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) told IOL that all police-related shootings are investigated.
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