A local woman is left with more questions than answers after she and her husband were accused of using counterfeit money.
The woman who asked to remain anonymous shared her account of what happened on July 7 with the News. She said at about 16:30 she went to a local pharmacy to fill a prescription.
“I paid and left the shop. Before I got to my car, one of the cashiers called me back.” She was told that the money she had used was counterfeit, that he had to contact the police, and that she would be arrested.
Her husband joined her and they were escorted to a back room. After approximately 15 minutes the police arrived and they were questioned about where the cash came from.
“We had sold two cell phones on Facebook, two weeks prior.”
She was asked to log into her bank account for the police to check, and when it became apparent she did not have much money, the same was asked of her husband.
“The police then escorted him to our car to get his phone; unfortunately his phone battery was flat. The police also searched our car, removing my laptop from the bag.”
The police then escorted them home and confiscated the rest of the cash. Her husband was made to log into his bank account on his work laptop with the police watching.
“The police were not interested in taking us to the station to formally inspect the money, or in the video footage taken at our complex. They assumed immediately that the money was counterfeit.”
However, she believes the money they used was not counterfeit, and said the police did not even attempt to check it.
“I believe that our rights as South African citizens were violated, firstly because it was assumed that the money the pharmacy manager gave to the police was in fact the money I had used to pay.”
Before going to the pharmacy she used the same money to pay at a doctor’s rooms, and when she enquired they said they had no issue with the money, and had in fact used it to pay for something else without any issues.
She also explained she was made to travel home in the police vehicle while the members either did not wear a mask or did not wear it properly. She had been diagnosed with health issues recently and found it alarming.
“While in the police car they harassed and intimidated me, making racial comments and laughing among themselves, threatening that if I couldn’t answer their questions about apartheid I would be arrested.”
The police confiscated more than R15 000 from the couple, and the woman said the money was not checked, counted or signed for.
The News contacted the Krugersdorp Police Station about the incident, and was told that the incident was being investigated.
EDIT: The News spoke to Captain Raymond Sebonyane, the Krugersdorp Police spokesperson, on Thursday, August 19, and will be meeting with the Krugersdorp Station Commander soon to enquire about the Police’s findings. An update will be published in due course.
