This is the complaint of the father of a 15-year-old Daveyton boy, whose son was wrongfully arrested for smoking dagga.
The father said he had just dropped off his son at home on August 14, when the police arrested him for “smoking dagga”.
“They were raiding for drugs and received a tip-off that there was a drug dealer at our address,” said the father.
Upon their arrival they didn’t find the tenant who is renting accommodation at the address, but they did find the St Dunstan’s College pupil, who was on school holidays and had just arrived back home from gym with his father.
“He was outside the house just before 12 noon when the drug squad grabbed him and forced him into the shack of the tenant, who was not home at the time,” said the father.
“They apparently beat the boy and forced him to lie next to the bed, where a dagga roach was found.”
The father alleges that this was apparently done to implicate the boy as the one who had smoked it.
The drug squad then took the boy and did their rounds with him in the back of the van.
When his father came back to pick him up to do some shopping, he was met by the boy’s grandmother, who told him about the incident.
The father, who is part of the SAPS, rushed to Etwatwa Police Station, where he found his son in the back of the police van.
The youngster explained everything and was released after his father spoke to the station commander.
Acting Benoni SAPS Cluster commander Brig Poobalan Subbiah said that his office believes that any allegations should be fairly submitted in writing.
“Unfortunately, drug focus is a priority and there will be many disgruntled persons,” he added.
2He defended the daily targets, saying they are necessary to ensure that the community is cleaned of drugs.
Subbiah called on the complainant to submit statements to substantiate his allegations.
