WHAT began as a night of partying at a junior wardress’ residence turned into a frightening encounter involving gunfire after a senior correctional officer’s wife allegedly used a service pistol to shoot at attendees.
The incident, which occurred last Friday night, involved a deputy commissioner general of His Majesty’s Correctional Services (HMCS), whose wife is accused of firing several shots around the residence where they had been invited to a party by a female junior correctional officer.
The names of the senior correctional officer and his wife are known to this publication but have been deliberately withheld pending internal investigations.
Highly placed sources said the senior officer had been invited to the party where attendants, including the officer’s wife, enjoyed some alcoholic beverages.
It is said during the course of the night, the wife suddenly started accusing the junior female officer of being a bad influence, claiming that she encouraged the officer to go on drinking sprees and introduced him to female companions.
The sources said the wife, in her drunken stupor, then went to their car and took the alleged service pistol, thereafter allegedly opened fire haphazardly around the house, where the officer, his friend and other companions were gathered.
The blazing gun saw the house occupants running helter-skelter, trying to find cover for dear life. With the chaotic shooting, the ceiling of the house in which the movie-like scene unfolded was reportedly left riddled with several bullet holes.
Sources further alleged that she directed the firearm towards both her husband and his female colleague. However, the two reportedly managed to escape without sustaining injuries.
Although nobody was reportedly hurt, the incident raised concerns beyond the domestic confrontation, particularly because the firearm allegedly used was government-issued and entrusted to a senior correctional officer.
The officer is said to have subsequently reported the matter to Mbabane police, where he allegedly expressed fears for his life.
The woman was subsequently taken into custody but was later released.
Sources further claimed that a formal case was not registered following her release, allegedly after police established that she was married to a senior correctional officer.
HMCS Public Relations Officer Assistant Chief Officer Baphelele Kunene said incidents involving suspected criminal activity ordinarily fell within the mandate of the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) and were expected to be reported to the police for appropriate action.
He therefore referred the newspaper to REPS to establish whether any such incident had been reported.
Regarding allegations that an official service firearm assigned to the deputy commissioner general had been used in the alleged incident, Kunene said HMCS would institute its own internal investigations should the allegations be substantiated. Such an inquiry would, among other things, seek to establish the circumstances under which the firearm allegedly came into the possession of another individual. He, however, maintained that the department had, at the time of the inquiry, not received any official information regarding the alleged incident and was therefore not in a position to comment further on the matter.
Meanwhile, Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Senior Superintendent Phindile Zwane said the police did not have an official record of the matter. Zwane was informed about the allegation that the wife was released after the police learned that she was married to the top correctional officer and was further asked to clarify if her release was temporary and if she had been advised to appear in court on a later date.
She insisted that the Mbabane police did not have an official record of the matter.
