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Cop victim now in hiding

18/12/2010 00:00:00 BONISILE MAKHUBU

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MBIKWAKHE – Sibusiso Mavundla, the man who was shot by police two weeks ago, is now in hiding.

Two police officers, from Sigodvweni Police Station shot Mavundla in the right leg at a bar at eMbikwakhe.

They then confiscated the bullet and his hospital documents, after he was attended to by doctors at the Raleigh Fitkin Memorial (RFM) Hospital.

Mavundla is currently not residing at his home but at a relative’s place, as he fears the police could locate him and take him to a place he does not know.

"I developed this fear after realising that the police were hiding the shooting and that they did not want me to take any action against them. I then decided to leave home, as I felt I was not safe," he said.

This week, senior police officers went to his home and confiscated a pair of trousers that he was wearing on the day of the shooting.

Ransacked

The two officers, a male identified as Shiba and a Simelane female ransacked the one-roomed house owned by Thabsile Dlamini, as they wanted the torn and blood-stained pants that Mavundla was wearing when the incident happende.

Dlamini, who is physically disabled, directed Shiba to where Mavundla, who was not present, had kept the trouser.

"Shiba was not in uniform when he took the pants with him, and did not say much on why he was taking them or when he would return them," she said.

She said the police then enquired about her son’s whereabouts and she informed them that he had been away from home for days.

Circumstances

The police started bothering Mavundla’s family a week after the shooting took place, a move presumed to have been prompted by this newspaper’s effort to get an explanation on circumstances surrounding the shooting.

When Swazi News arrived at Mavundla’s home on Tuesday, together with him, he was shocked to learn from his mother that Shiba arrived over the weekend and took the pants.

Police Public Relations Officer Superintendent Wendy Hleta said she could only reveal that the police have opened an inquiry into the matter.

"I cannot discuss anything about this until compilation of a report on the findings," she said.

…disabled mother has no helper

MBIKWAKHE – Physi cally disabled mother of Sibusiso Mavundla is living a miserable life following the shooting of her only son by the police two weeks ago.

Thabsile Dlamini who has one child and a four-year-old granddaughter cannot reach up to a height of about one metre.

This is due to the nature of her physical disability which also makes her unable to walk and has difficulty just moving from one place to another.

She said for all her life, she has relied on Sibusiso for help around the house and on other errands like fetching water, opening the door and doing anything that requires moving around.

An emotional Dlamini narrated how the police officer who shot her son robbed her of a serviceman.

"My granddaughter is too young to be of help to me. She can only attend to people knocking at the door," she lamented.

Pains

She said what pains her most is that it is clear the officers had no reason to shoot Mavundla because they have already shown signs of guilt.

Dlamini said, "First of all they never bothered to report the incident to me but they simply took my son to hospital on their own and later on dumped him far away from home. They also tutored him against hiring a lawyer because they know they are at fault."

She said by also grabbing every trace of evidence, the police have shown there is more than meets the eye in this matter.

…POLICE warn him not to hire lawyer

MBIKWAKHE – Police have allegedly warned the victim against engaging an attorney, claiming he will be cheated.

The officer in question is known to Swazi News but will not be revealed yet. He is among the senior officers at Sigodvweni Police Station.

Sibusiso Mavundla, who is currently on crutches after being shot by the police, said on his first visit at his home after the shooting incident, the male officer who is known to him ‘brainwashed’ him against engaging the services of an attorney.

Mavundla had indicated to the officer that he had approached a Manzini-based attorney to handle his case.

Discourage

He said he will not listen to the advice because he was aware the police were only trying to discourage him from accessing help because they knew they were at fault.

In a previous interview with Mavundla’s attorney, it transpired that he would take up the matter.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, the lawyer said they were still waiting for the injuries to heal so that the doctor could compile a comprehensive report.

The Law Society of Swaziland has not taken kindly to the advice that the police officer allegedly gave Mavundla.

Simanga Dlamini, the Secretary General, said it is everybody’s constitutional right to seek the services of an attorney.

He said it was very shocking to learn that a man who is supposed to be giving advice was to the contrary going around preaching this to unsuspecting victims.

Professional

"I would like to encourage the public to engage professional attorneys’ services because they have the necessary qualification and they are governed by ethics by which they abide," he said.

Mamba warned the public against consulting ‘under the trees’. He said the industry was now infested with bogus lawyers who are not registered with the Law Society.

He said, "People should consult at offices, look for certificates of admission and demand to know their attor-ney’s qualifications."