WATCH: Police car with missing door driven through Durban streets
Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi said the police officer did not follow due process after the accident.
A POLICE officer who drove a marked State vehicle with the driver’s side door missing is facing disciplinary action after a video surfaced on social media.
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The order comes from the Provincial Commissioner of KwaZulu-Natal Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.
According to a statement issued by the SAPS, the vehicle was involved in an accident in Durban North after colliding with a minibus.
@caxtonlocalmedia A viral video of a police van driving through Durban without a driver’s door has sparked outrage. Now, the KZN Police Commissioner is taking action after it was revealed the door was removed during a rescue, but the vehicle was still driven back to the station! #caxtondurban #SAPS #KZNNews ♬ are you ready? – NEU SONG.
The video was taken on Sunday, June 1, and is believed to have gone viral yesterday, Monday, June 2.
The statement read: The police vehicle was involved in an accident in the Durban North policing precincts where it collided with a minibus taxi. The driver at the time of the accident was a female Warrant Officer who was trapped inside the vehicle, and the door had to be removed to rescue her.
Without the door, although in a drivable condition, the vehicle should have been towed back to the police station. Instead of following prescribed procedures, another driver, also a Warrant Officer, drove the vehicle to the station, endangering his life and putting the name and the image of the South African Police Service into disrepute. Although the vehicle was being escorted by another blue-light vehicle which the video does not show, the fact remains that the vehicle was not supposed to be driven in such an unroadworthy condition.
“We are working so hard to protect the image of the police in the province of KwaZulu-Natal and we are doing our best to regain public trust. The management of police in KwaZulu-Natal will not allow anyone to tarnish the image by disregarding regulations and procedures. The member who was driving the vehicle, the officer who gave such an unlawful instruction for the vehicle to be driven and anyone else who was involved in the decision to have that vehicle driven in that condition will be subjected to internal disciplinary processes. We shall never allow anyone to undo the positive impact that police have been making to create a safe and secure environment for all the people in the province of KwaZulu-Natal,” said Lieutenant General Mkhwanazi.
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