Woman in court for pointing a gun at Clicks protesters
Case postponed to November 6
Diane Attwell, the Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape, woman accused of pointing a firearm at protesters outside a Clicks store this week, made a brief court appearance yesterday morning.
The case was postponed to November 6 for further investigation.
She faces a charge of pointing a firearm.
The prosecution said a witness statement and video footage from the Walmer Park shopping centre, where Attwell clashed with protesters on Tuesday morning, were still outstanding.
Later, she was led out at the back of the Port Elizabeth magistrate’s court building.
There was a heavy police presence but no protesters outside the court.
Attwell’s clash with protesters on Tuesday was caught on video by a shopper who did not want to be named for fear of reprisal.
When the video starts, a small group of protesters, a grey-haired woman and her elderly shopping companion, are seen with four security guards standing between them.
It is not clear what started the initial altercation but as tempers flare, a woman can be heard shouting: “Go back to Europe.”
The grey-haired woman’s voice is indistinct, but after she says something to the protesters, a woman’s voice can be heard shouting: “Take out your gun, take out your gun.”
Attwell promptly pulled a gun out of her pink bodywarmer and pointed it directly at the protesters before being hustled off by security guards.
In the background a man and a woman’ voices can be heard saying, “Shoot, shoot”, encouraging Attwell to fire at the protesters.
‘‘ A voice is heard shouting, ‘Shoot’