An off-duty policeman shot a man and then turned the gun on himself at Dobsonville in Soweto on Saturday, Johannesburg police said.

"The policeman had a fight with a community member at 4pm. He shot the man in the head and then shot himself," said police spokesperson Inspector Kay Makhubele.

The policeman, stationed at Kagiso police station, died on the scene while the man was taken to hospital in a serious condition.

The motive for the shooting is not known and police are investigating, said Makhubele.

Sapa