Cops substitute escapee with innocent man
TWO police officers from Maitland police station are expected to appear in the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court today for defeating the administration of justice and kidnapping.
This after they allegedly arrested a suspect for housebreaking and theft in Maitland on May 29, realised he was in need of medical attention, and took him to Somerset Hospital, where he escaped.
Police spokesperson FC van Wyk said a constable was left at the hospital to guard the suspect. While there, the suspect escaped and the constable informed the warrant officer.
“The officers drove around the area looking for the suspect but could not trace him. They returned to the Maitland area and found another person on the street whom they took to the police station and detained in place of the suspect,” Van Wyk said.
He said they did not inform anyone of what had happened. It was only the next day, when the suspect was processed, that the detective realised that the person did not fit the description of the suspect who was originally arrested.
Van Wyk said the matter was referred to the Anti-Corruption Unit for investigation. He said on completion of the investigation it was discussed with the Director of Public Prosecutions, Western Cape, who decided to charge them.
He said the magistrate at Cape Town Court authorised warrants for the arrest of the officers and they were detained at Cape Town Central police station on Friday.
Community Safety MEC Albert Fritz said: “I can’t believe that members of our SAPS would just arrest an innocent person because the actual suspect managed to get away.”
Fritz said he would discuss the case with provincial police commissioner Tembekile Phathekile. He called on the police to take every step to root out the bad apples in their ranks who commit such heinous acts of injustice.
“I want to say to citizens that if you have any information pertaining to this specific case, or cases like this, please come forward so that the matter can be investigated properly and action can be taken,” Fritz said.
Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru) spokesperson, Richard Mamabolo, said the union would comment on the matter once the court processes had been deliberated.
“As it stands, they are still suspects,” Mamabolo said.
SA Policing Union (Sapu) spokesperson, Lesiba Thobakgale, said the union condemned any form of corruption or any disregard of the law.
He said the union would stick to principles.
“Where there are allegations of such a nature against police officials, investigations should be allowed to take place in order to get to the bottom of such allegations without trying members outside courts, and the rule of law should prevail through necessary structures put in place,” he said.
A criminologist at Stellenbosch University’s political science department, Guy Lamb, said it was important that the officers were held to account for their actions and were to appear in court because there had been a number of cases of low level police corruption and incompetence.
“In this particular case it was incompetence, corruption and miscarriage of justice. I know that SAPS Maitland is known to be quite professional and efficient,” he said.