Beaten driver comes forward
POLICE have urged a Durban man, seen being severely beaten up by alleged illegal drag racers in Springfield, to come forward and press charges.
Cellphone footage of a man being beaten up, soon after he drove into the path of an illegal drag race on Umgeni Road on Thursday night, has gone viral, with the video shared more than 6 000 times online, and with more than 90000 views.
Late last night, Kuben Pather, from Umhlatuzana township, said he was the victim in the video and was still recovering from the incident. He said he would lay a charge today, through his lawyer.
“I want to see justice done. I am in the process of opening a charge, and hopefully it will all be sorted out today,” he said.
Pather said he had taken his father’s Tazz for a test drive.
“I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. I tried to sort it out in a reasonable manner but these guys were very hotheaded,” he said.
Pather will also see a doctor today, and said while he hadn’t been on Facebook, he thanked everyone for their concern.
In the video, a white Toyota Tazz is seen turning left on to Umgeni Road at the same time that several cars, allegedly drag racing, speed down the road. The driver crossed the path of the racers twice. Some people condoned the beating because he almost caused an accident.
The video was sent yesterday to motorsport enthusiast Wesley James Smith who, angered by the brutality of the clip, posted it on his account, calling for the law to step in. He posted online: “Now as a concerned person I have taken it upon myself to get the footage and find the poor guy you kicked like a savage. Today is the day you learn the power of social media. A weekend in jail is going to seem like an eternity. Share and show you have a heart and get this guy some justice. No matter what happened... no one deserves this.”
Smith said he was passionate about motorsport, but did not support illegal drag racing and he wanted justice for the victim.
“We can’t sit back and let things like this happen. Even if the man drove into their path, two wrongs do not make a right. Several guys beat up the man so badly he couldn’t get up,” said Smith.
KZN police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Thulani Zwane said they were not aware of the incident
and the video, and added: “Anyone who was assaulted can open a case of assault to any police station so the matter can be investigated.”
A staff member at the Engen garage said they had been instructed not to speak to the media, but added that by the afternoon, no police had come to the garage for CCTV footage.
One Facebook user said: “Why hasn’t someone helped this old man get on his feet or stop the fight – seriously people – the person who made this video is as big a coward as those guys who hit the old man – How proud you must be to have caught such a wonderful video – You should’ve used that phone to call the police.”
Another said: “This man deserved it! Watch the video of him skipping a red robot without looking for any other motorists. Had this man run over your kid because of his negligence how would you react?”