Ex commander in court for child pornography

A FORMER Camps Bay police station commander made a brief appearance in the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court, yesterday on charges of indecent assault and possession of child pornography.

The arrest of Zbiegniew Andrzej Weclaw, a 65-year-old Vredehoek resident, comes after his son Daniel Clifford Weclaw, discovered multiple boxes of DVDs containing child pornography, some filmed by Weclaw himself.

The videos featured mostly young boys, one of whom was of Daniel as a young boy. Daniel is now 39 years old.

Weclaw was a station commander at the Camps Bay station for 21 years and a police member for 30 years.

He was arrested at his residence on November 24, last year, and appeared in court on the same day. He was released on R 2 000 bail. Police also found an unlicensed firearm at his home.

The magistrate told a frail-looking Weclaw that his bail had been extended and his next court appearance would take place at the regional court, on May 25.

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Eric Ntabazalila said: “The accused appeared in Court 16 of Cape Town Magistrate’s Court. He is charged with a count of indecent assault and two counts of possession of child pornography. The accused is out on bail.”

Speaking to the Cape Argus, Daniel said: “It’s been almost a year since I’ve laid a charge. I haven’t had an interview with the prosecutor. The investigating officer, I don’t even know what to do there, there’s been no investigation, nothing. How do you trial a case without speaking to the main witness?”

Weclaw laid a charge against his father in April, last year. He said it took police seven months to arrest his father. “I don’t understand, and it is so frustrating, and I just want things to go forward,” said an emotional Weclaw.

Dockets went missing after previous attempts to lay a formal charge. Weclaw said he had been sexually abused by his father since the age of 6, until the end of primary school.

“When I confronted him, he admitted it and said he was sorry. He distributed porn to the public. It was his side business, but they haven’t even searched his house. They found two boxes of DVDs containing child porn, some he made himself, and they don’t search his house.”

Weclaw believes there are more firearms and DVDs ranging in the thousands.