Proud Kanyungwe, a Zimbabwean pastor and his wife, Belinda Tarisai Mukucha have been killed.

The pair were shot and killed by two armed robbers in South Africa while their two daughters, one of them aged three years, watched helplessly.

According to The Chronicle, the armed robbers went away with two cellphones and a laptop.

Alexandra Police Station spokesperson Captain Kholeka Mhlongo confirmed the incident, which occurred on Thursday shortly after 2AM at the couple’s rented home in Scottsville Extension in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu Natal province.

Capt Kholeka Mhlongo said the suspects used a concrete brick to break the front door to gain entry into the house.

He identified the deceased pastor as Proud Kanyungwe (32) and his wife, Belinda Tarisai Mukucha (28). Kanyungwe was a senior pastor at the Grace International Church.

Capt Mhlongo said Kanyungwe woke up and went to investigate after hearing noise.

“Two armed gunmen entered the deceased’s rented house at around 2AM. We suspect when he (Kanyungwe) saw the door opening he tried to wrestle with the suspects and during the scuffle, one of the two men pulled out a gun and shot him,” he said.

The suspects then got into the house and shot Mukucha while she was walking out of her bedroom door as her children were watching.

The suspects came through the backyard and tried to gain entry through the garage roof.

“They removed some tiles and they couldn’t get access into the house. They then came to open the garage door and disconnected the alarm there,” said Capt Mhlongo.

He said the robbers then forced open the security gate and hit the door with a concrete brick.

The suspects are still at large and police have since launched a manhunt for them.