Cape Town - The three Worcester police officers who were captured on video assaulting and hitting men with a sjambok last year have been found not guilty.
In the short clip that surfaced on social media in January 2021, the officers can be seen confronting the men before one of them is hit in the face by an officer, while another police officer violently hits a man with a sjambok.
The police vehicle in the video is said to belong to the Ceres Police Station but was used by the police unit in Worcester.
An investigation was launched following the incident “to shed light on what had happened prior to the recording commencing”.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Novela Potelwa on Tuesday said the police members implicated were not found guilty.
“The matter you enquired about was finalised on the 28th of April 2021. The police members implicated were found not guilty,” she said.
Councillor in Worcester, Colin Wilskut, said the outcome of the police investigation was “unacceptable”.
“How is it possible that someone can be deemed innocent when the video in front of us shows that the police brutality in this case is clear?
“The officer took out the sjambok and hit the guy based on the fact that they did not have a mask.
“So the police think in their right minds that the community is either stupid and can’t see the difference between right and wrong?
“I believe that this is the type of reaction that scars the police.
“They don’t have any integrity left in the community. The community doesn’t trust the police simply for these baseless lies.
“This type of brutality is uncalled for, it is unfair and someone needs to be held responsible,” said Wilskut.
The finding was released as the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) says it has collected statements from the victims and witnesses after a man was captured being assaulted by two Fish Hoek police officers in a video that has since also gone vial.
Resident Joel Richard Gaffley, 28, was attacked outside his house in Emerald Crescent with what appeared to be batons after he allegedly called the police to report a missing person, according to witnesses.
Gaffley appeared in the Simon’s Town Magistrate’s Court on assault charges and was released on bail on Monday. His case was postponed to September 20 for “possible mediation”.
Ipid spokesperson Grace Langa said they had sent Western Cape investigators to collect the docket and resume investigations into the incident.
“We have met with the victims and witnesses and statements have been collected,” said Langa.
Hannah Sanderson, who captured the video, said neighbours and passers-by were screaming for the police to stop and they wouldn’t listen.
“On Sunday morning my father told me that there were police outside as our tenant had called them. I heard Joel speaking to the police officers and he sounded distressed. A minute later I could hear a commotion.
“Then I heard Joel screaming for help. I immediately rushed back inside the house to look for the keys because the gate was locked. I finally got outside after about 4-5 minutes of Joel shouting for help, and all I could do was take a video at that point. It didn’t make any sense why Joel was the one who called the police and he was the one being assaulted. The bystanders were screaming and pleading with officers to stop and they wouldn’t listen,” she said.
Cape Times