Durban - They were brothers in arms. They rode together, they worked together, and last Friday they were on a pavement bleeding together.
Detective constables Ajith Krishanlal and Jerome Mngoma were ambushed when they stumbled across an armed robbery in progress at a KFC outlet in New Germany.
Krishanlal was killed in a shoot-out with the robbers and Mngoma is currently in hospital recovering from his wounds.
This week, colleagues of both officers fondly recalled the memories they shared together. “Krish (Krishanlal) and Jerome were joined at the hip. If you were looking for either of the two, you would just have to locate one of them. They were like brothers. They ate together, joked about football, and were passionate about their work,” said their colleague Terrance Govender.
Govender said both men were always willing to assist fellow officers and the public and were very good at their jobs.
“These guys could have easily sat back and waited for back-up to arrive but they chose to try to save lives. That makes them heroes in my book,” said Govender.
Another colleague, who declined to be named, said that Mngoma was devastated by Krishanlal's death.
“He's not in a very good state psychologically. When we visited him, he was crushed by Krish's death. He kept asking about how the family was doing,” said the colleague.
The colleague added that Mngoma said the first thing he would do when he got out of hospital would be to visit Krishanlal's family.
“They were really close and it's going to be a while before he gets over Krish's death. I don't think he will ever forget him,” he said.
While Krishanlal's funeral was taking place, about 200 people including policemen, residents, and family gathered in New Germany at the scene of the shooting for a memorial service.
Dozens of flowers and messages were placed outside KFC to honour him and Mngoma.
Jacques Stephen, a reservist who arranged the memorial, paid tribute to Krishanlal, saying he was a dedicated policeman who paid the ultimate price.
“Our condolences go out to Krish's family. He was out here protecting the community and he died protecting this community. Our thoughts and prayers are with both families,” said Stephen.
A New Germany resident, who declined to be named, also addressed the gathering. “Krish was my friend. He was a great guy. He was always smiling and always willing to assist the community. These violent acts need to stop. What is our community coming to?” he said.
Krishanlal's relatives also attended the memorial. Teary-eyed residents were seen wearing caps with the words 'RIP KRISH' on them. Police colleagues and residents carried signs reading 'Stop Police Killings' and 'Is my dad next' as hundreds of white balloons were released into the sky in memory of the fallen policeman. - Post