Manhunt under way after Zuma's bodyguard shod dead

South African Police have launched a manhunt following the murder of an off-duty bodyguard of President Jacob Zuma, the government said on Tuesday.

Sergeant NJ Magwaza, 42, was shot dead at his home in eNtumeni, Eshowe in KwaZulu-Natal Province in the early hours of Monday morning.

Magwaza, who was stationed at the Presidential Protection Unit, was asleep inside his rondavel when unknown suspects set the house alight.

After getting out the rondavel, Magwaza was shot dead by unidentified gunmen.

Magwaza had stated before the shooting that there were people who wanted him dead.

The suspects fled the scene with his service pistol, a government report said.

The motive for the killing has not yet been established but investigations are underway.

The Hawks, a special anti-crime unit, called the killing as an attack on the security of the State.

Lieutenant-General Mthandazo Ntlemeza, the National Head of the Hawks, appealed to members of the community to assist police in the investigation by providing information that may lead to the arrest of the suspects.

"The people responsible for his death must know that we are out to get them. We urge anyone with information about the killing or the whereabouts of the suspects to come forward and help us restore justice," said Ntlemeza. Enditem