Cops doing nothing about my assault case'

The businessman, Andries Van Wyk, alleges the police assaulted him for demanding a receipt for a spot fine. Van Wyk, the Director of Jacaranda Investment, said the Police Commissioner Isaac Magagula has not taken any action regarding his grievances.

He said the police failure to attend to his grievances implied the police condoned brutality towards innocent civilians. Van Wyk alleged that after he was stopped by officers on April 20, 2012, for driving over the speed limit, he was manhandled by the officers, who tried to pin his arms behind his back and roughly pushed him face-first onto the floor of a police kombi. The businessman said it all began when he asked for a receipt in exchange for the spot fine.

"The police asked where the money was and I took it out from my pocket and showed them," he said on Friday. He alleged that after the police had refused to give him the receipt he decided to withdraw his driver’s licence, after which the assault began. The businessman alleges he wrote a letter to the Police Commissioner, a copy of which is in this newspaper’s possession, for redress. The letter, dated June 4, 2012, reminds the Police Commissioner that the businessman made a complaint to him but, seemingly, nothing has been happening.

"On the day of 14th May 2012, I had delivered at the police Headquarters a written complaint against the conduct of some police officers which I suffered on the 20th day of April 2012 near the Ngwenya border post when I was stopped due to exceeding the speed limit," read the letter in part.

The letter further states that, to the businessman’s surprise, he had not received any reply concerning his complaint, which was reportedly supported by affidavits that he was unjustly assaulted, arrested and prosecuted for insisting on being issued with a receipt for the tendered spot fine. Van Wyk alleged that the police lied that he resisted arrest and swore at them.

The businessman said he was a Christian and had never used swear words at anyone.

After this reporter had inquired last week Sunday from the police about how far they had gone in handling Van Wyk’s grievances, a meeting was convened by the Regional Commander, Richard Mngomezulu, with the complainant. Van Wyk alleged the Regional Commander (RC) apologised for the assault. "I want an apology in black and white," he said, adding that the verbal apology was not enough. He said the officer who assaulted him insulted him further during the meeting by repeatedly shaking his head when he made his submissions. Van Wyk said the meeting did not yield any satisfactory results.

Comments

Praise God they didnt do anything to you my brother. These people have become something else, syabonga wasindza labanye are gone loskhuluma etandleni tabo. Tandla tabo tigcwele ingati.
Jun 18, 2012, 6:11 AM, W. Reddy (wr@ymail)

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