ASSAULT AT POLICE STATION GOES VIRAL
WHITE RIVER - The Lowveld community reeled with shock after a couple had allegedly been assaulted inside the White River Police Station.
Videos of the attack went viral on social media on Sunday after the incident had taken place earlier that morning.
On Sunday morning, Delia Human and her fiancé, Barend Byliefeldt, left their farm to go grocery shopping in town. They had their dog with them.
“When we approached White River, a group of vehicles started overtaking on double solid lines, nearly pushing us off the road. At this point Barend told me to take his phone and start recording as they were driving extremely recklessly.
“When we approached the Casterbridge circle, we were basically surrounded by these suspect vehicles. The one, a black Range Rover with no licence plates, suddenly stopped in front of us. He got out, pulled out his firearm, and walked towards the driver’s side of our vehicle.
“Barend reversed, smashing into the vehicle that was blocking our rear and then went offroad to get out from behind the Range Rover.
Byliefeldt used alternative routes to get to the police station. “We managed to get to the station and we immediately got out and ran inside,” said Human.
The officers took them into the
radio room. “Our dog was still in our car. There were a number of the men who had chased us outside the station. Some of them came inside requesting that the police must ‘let us out’ and that they wanted our phones.
“Barend was recording the entire time. The men outside yelled through the windows that they would shoot us. One of the officers told us to give our phones to them. We refused. At one point one of the men, who had pushed his way into the radio room, called Barend by his name and surname and stated our physical address, telling us they would come for us.
“At the same time, they yelled that they had judges and the SAPS in their pockets and that we had no idea who they were and who we were dealing with. All the police did was threaten to take our phones, telling us repeatedly to hand these over to them and the men,” she said.
The SAPS allegedly then told them to go into another room down the passage where they had limited view of their vehicle and dog. “We reached out to friends, attorneys and security companies.
“One of our friends arrived to pick up our dog. Barend walked out to help our friend with our dog when the men chased him inside the police station to get his phone. He wanted to get back inside to me when four men started assaulting him. None of the police tried to stop the men. Barend was clinching his phone to his chest while at the same time trying to get back to me at the so-called safe area. At this point I started recording.
“As the men tried to drag him outside, they told him they were going to shoot him. During the assault, the men managed to get Barend’s phone. From when we had arrived at the police station, we asked several times to make a statement and open a case. We were ignored and threatened.
“The moment our attorney arrived, everyone disappeared.” Human has since informed Lowvelder that they would be represented by AfriForum in this matter.