Heartache for slain K9’s police partner

IT WAS an empty feeling for Sergeant Elliot Mdadane carrying out his dead K-9 partner Shaka, after the dog was felled by a bullet to his head, during a hunt for suspects hiding in a sugarcane field this week.

Mdadane and Shaka arrived at the crime scene in Maqongqo, near Pietermaritzburg, to pursue armed suspects who fled into the field after a shootout with the police, at about 10am.

“I was told by TRT (SAPS’ Tactical Response Team) members they wanted K-9 intervention as the suspects ran into the sugarcane field.

“Within five minutes, we picked up spoor (tracks) and searched for the suspects.

“We had to crawl on our knees because the sugarcane was thick.

“We couldn’t walk or stand.

“As soon as Shaka confronted one suspect, he was shot once in the head. The suspect fired at us and we returned fire, before he went back into hiding,” he said.

Mdadane said the dog led the way and he held onto a puppy line.

“If it had not been for the dog, it could have been me who came face to face with the suspect and into the firing line.

“We were friends, working partners, and Shaka was always next to me in the field of duty,” Mdadane said.

He recalled the many dangerous call-outs they attended since teaming up in 2017.

“We had a good understanding. “He was someone I could trust to get the job done,” he said.

Mdadane was back at work on Tuesday and said it didn’t feel the same without Shaka.