COPS SMACKED US FOR NOTHING, SAY STUDENTS
I NO LONGER have respect for the police after they took advantage of their authority and without reason assaulted me.
So said 18-year-old Kresan Moodley, who claimed eThekwini Metro Police officers yanked him by the neck and repeatedly slapped him outside Anchorlite College in Joe Slovo (Field) Street in central Durban last Wednesday morning. It was without provocation, Moodley alleged. His friend Sachin Naicker, 20, of Malvern, tried to question the police about their rough-handling tactics but allegedly ended up being slapped, punched and kicked.
They said they were then thrown into the back of the police van and taken on a high speed terror ride in the Durban CBD before being dropped off in Dr Yusuf Dadoo (Grey) Street.
The friends, who are completing matric at Anchorlite College, were warned not to return to the college that day or face further assault by their colleagues, who were confiscating goods from street traders.
Both submitted statements about their ordeal at Durban Metro Police offices and opened cases of assault at Durban Central Police Station.
But their families claimed that after repeated attempts, the station had not furnished them with a case number.
“I have no respect for them after what happened. They assaulted me for no reason,” said Moodley.
He said that during an interval at 10am he and his friends decided to stand outside the college.
“We were watching the Metro Police confiscate goods from the traders. One cop, in casual clothing, saw me watching and approached. He grabbed me by the neck and pulled me toward the police van. I asked him what he was doing but he did not reply.
“Another policeman, in uniform, then headed toward us. He said I had a big mouth and slapped me.
“I questioned why they were doing this but their colleague arrived and also slapped me.”
Naicker, who witnessed the assault, intervened.
“I asked them why they were hitting my friend. They said I had a big mouth and slapped me. I tried to back away but more cops surrounded me. They punched me, tripped me, and kicked me. I tried to protect myself and eventually lay still so they would stop.”
The friends were thrown into the police van, they said.
They said they also watched a female student being attacked.
The student, Kerna Taylor, 21, said: “One officer, who said he was a superintendent, saw me with a cellphone and yanked it out of my hand.
“He probably thought I captured the whole incident on my phone and wanted to delete it. I managed to grab the phone.
“I told him that if he wanted my phone, he should ask nicely for it. But he ended up slapping me, pushing me against a car and throttling me.
“Other policemen pulled at my jersey and my phone fell. The senior policeman deleted the pictures I took and gave the phone to a teacher.”
Taylor’s mother advised her not to open a case as it would be pointless.
Moodley and Naicker said two officers then drove off at high speed through town.
“He drove recklessly. I knocked on the window and said I was going to charge them. They stopped the van in Grey Street, got out, and seemed afraid they would get into trouble.
“They told us we were lucky they didn’t hit us any further and warned us not to return to the college or their friends would assault us. They then left.” Both young men called their families for help. After heading for Metro Police and Durban Central Police Station, they sought medical attention.
Moodley sustained a swollen ear drum and bruises, while Naicker bore the brunt of the injuries.
He had a blue eye, a broken lip, and his face was swollen. His forearm was injured and his shin was bruised.
Moodley’s mother, Vanitha, said: “This is police brutality. They are supposed to protect us, not to take advantage of their authority.”
Naicker’s father, Eddie, said the incident was unacceptable.
Both parents gave the police the van’s registration number to assist with the investigation.
By yesterday (Tuesday) they had still not received a case number.
Gareth Newman of the Institute of Security Studies said it should not take more than 24-hours for a case number to be registered.
He said the Independent Police Investigative Directorate presented a report to Parliament and indicated that from 2012 to 2013, 4 097 cases of assault and torture were opened against the police by civilians.
Metro Police spokesman Superintendent Eugene Msomi could not be reached for comment.
Despite numerous attempts, the provincial police communications department did not comment on the alleged assault.