Mentally ill man dies after police stand-off
A Durban-based organisation has criticised how police retaliated when a mentally ill man tried to set himself and a police station alight outside Hillcrest on Tuesday.
Thirty-six-year-old Sizwe Zondi allegedly doused himself with petrol before pouring some in the Molweni satellite station's charge office threatening to torch himself and the building.
He later died in hospital due to burn and gunshot wounds.
Durban and Coastal Mental Health's Patience Mngadi says police could have handled the situation differently.
"I believe they are negotiating with the person trained in the SAPS force and the person wasn't holding any ammunition they just saw the person being wild with petrol. There are a lot of ways that they could have intervened," she said.
She says they have been doing road shows to create awareness especially since July is National Mental Health Month.
Police spokesperson Thulani Zwane says they only realised after the incident that the man was mentally ill.
He says officers' lives were in danger.
"There was not other way the police could deal with this situation. They had to use necessary force because everything was so quick," he said.
The incident is being investigated.