A police sergeant who unintentionally shot dead an intruder in his home was on Wednesday found not guilty of murder when he appeared in the Bellville Regional Court.

Sergeant Gerrit Willemse was tearful when he stepped out of the prisoner's dock.

His appearance before Magistrate Frans Botes was a sequel to the incident in Willemse's Kraaifontein home in the early hours of the morning six years ago.

His lawyer Sandra Swart said it was self defence, and prosecutor Barry van der Berg told the court the circumstances of the case did not call for a conviction.

Botes said anyone would shoot in self defence if awoken in the early hours by an intruder. He said the man, armed with a hammer, had ignored several warnings to submit to arrest.

At one stage the intruder lunged at Willemse with the hammer and then threw it at him, but missed. Botes said the scuffle in the house had moved into the garage where, in the darkness, Willemse fired two shots.

One of the shots severed an artery in the intruder's right leg.

What complicated the situation legally was that both shots had entered the back of the intruders right leg, which meant they were no longer fired in self defence.

Botes said the shots fired in the garage had nevertheless left them in doubt about Willemse's guilt, and Willemse was therefore entitled to the benefit of the doubt.