Cape Town - The Police ministry will have to cough up damages in full to a man who was shot in the ankle while in a scuffle with police, unlawfully arrested and, then detained for about five days.
Tlhatsi’s case heard in the High Court of South Africa Kwazulu-Natal Local Division in Durban, claimed victory when the judge ordered the ministry should pay 100% of the cost of damages yet to be determined.
Acting high court judge Nomfundo Sipunzi said the police ministry admitted the arrest of Tlhatsi “was without a warrant and contended the offence involved was a Schedule 1 offence and the arrest was based on a reasonable suspicion that he, Tlhatsi had committed the offence”. They also denied the allegations of assault.
“(Tlhatsi) was walking down the road to the store when a white sedan approached him from behind. When it reached him, it stopped and blocked his path. Warrant Officer Mthiyane, who was unknown to Tlhatsi and in civilian clothing, jumped off from the front passenger seat of the sedan.
He held and forced Tlhatsi into the motor vehicle and a scuffle ensued as the plaintiff was resisting being placed in the vehicle.
“Mthiyane was telling him to get into their vehicle. The driver of the motor vehicle, Warrant Officer Ngcobo also joined in. As the scuffle continued Ngcobo hit him with the butt of a firearm on the back of his head. He also fired a shot, which struck the plaintiff on the left ankle. The plaintiff denied that he was in possession of a steel rod. He denied that he used the steel rod to hit Mthiyane during the scuffle,” the judgment read.
Tlhatsi said he managed to escape from the two police officers and fled on foot but this spelled further trouble for him as he was then attacked by members of the community, thinking he was a criminal.
“As he was running down the road, (the officers) were shouting to others to catch the criminal, referring to Tlhatsi as the criminal.
About three to four gunshots were also fired at him. He was running, hoping that his colleagues with whom he was working with at the nearby train station would rescue him.
“He tripped and fell into a ditch which resulted in an injury to his right ankle. He crawled and hid in a nearby toilet building. He was pulled out of the toilet building.
The officers had been joined by about 25 to 30 people from the community. These people hit him with sticks and sjamboks for about ten minutes until his colleagues arrived and stopped the attack on him,” the judgment read.
Thereafter, Tlhatsi was taken to a local police station where he was detained in a police cell for approximately five hours before he was taken to hospital - still with no reason for his arrest. After his hospital stay, Tlhatsi was taken back to a police station but then “without having entered a courtroom or appearing before a magistrate”, he was released and went home with his siblings.
“Subsequently, the plaintiff went to the Hammersdale Police Station to enquire whether there was any case that may have been registered against him, but to no avail. He had not been informed that there was a case of attempted rape that was registered against him. Instead, after some time he laid a charge of attempted murder against Mthiyane and Ngcobo.
“In this case, it has already been found that the officers ... failed to demonstrate that the arrest and detention that deprived (Tlhatsi) of his liberty and dignity were constitutionally and statutorily justified. It follows that the assault on the plaintiff was unlawful and unjust,” said Sipunzi.
Cape Times