‘They beat us with sjamboks’: three men vs eight Tshwane metro officers

Ipid is investigating

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) will on Thursday visit three men who claim to have been beaten and sjamboked by eight Tshwane Metro Police officers.

A man who identified himself as Shiba, shows the welts on his back which he claims came from a beating by Tshwane metro cops.
Image: Supplied

They are also working to identify the officers on duty that night.

Images and videos of the victims appeared on social media on Wednesday.

In one of the videos, a man identified only as Shiba, showed welts on his back and chest which he alleges came from blows from a sjambok. He has blood running down his face.

As he turns to look at the person taking the video, he exclaims: “They just beat us, they don’t have a right.”

He then turns back to a crowd and what looks like a security guard and shouts: “Tell [them] we are going to [inaudible]. They don’t have a right to beat us like this.”

He looks over his shoulder at the camera and says: “These people they undermine us.”

He claims that they did not fight back.

“They beat us and beat us and beat us — for no reason,” he says as the clip ends.

Ipid spokesperson Grace Langa said the incident occurred on October 2 after 11pm when the three went to the Tshwane impound vehicle centre in Madiba Street, wanting to collect their vehicle.

On arrival they found the gate was locked and security refused to let them in. A female metro officer then allegedly spoke to them. That was the end of their conversation.

Langa then goes on to tell the story from the witness statements.

It is alleged that “all of a sudden about eight metro police officers came ‘from out of nowhere.’”

She said, according to the men’s version, it looked like the cops may have arrived by vehicle at the pound, “and immediately started sjamboking them and hitting them with their hands”.

She said the injuries led to them being admitted to hospital.

Langa said Ipid received the case on Tuesday and is still working to identify the eight officers.

“Though not identified [as yet], Ipid has spoken to their superior to see who was on duty and will meet the officers at their place of work.”

A case of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm has been registered and the investigation is ongoing.

TimesLIVE (TMG Digital)

Alex Patrick