News

Our guards keep dropping the ball

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes - who will guard the guards themselves? Or in this case, who polices the police? In another world, you might find the thought entertaining, that police need policing, but in our world the thought has become reality.

July 23, 2018

Sjani Campher 3 minutes read

The decomposed body that was found on the river bank near Kees Taljaard remains unidentified.

While we have enough on our minds to keep us out of sleep, our guards keep dropping the ball on us and clumsy, embarrassing mistakes, have become the norm.

• On the sixth of April, a decomposed body was found on the river banks of the Klein Olifants river near Kees Taljaard Stadium by passersby. The police investigated the scene but could not identify the body or locate the deceased’s next of kin.

Every time www.mobserver.co.za followed up with the police, they were informed that the body remained unidentified, until www.mobserver.co.za received a call in June from a convict in the Middelburg Prison and Correctional Facility.

Mr Jabu Motsweni, who was serving a sentence at the time, claimed that he knew the identification of the body that was found but the line was cut off. After investigation, www.mobserver.co.za managed get Mr Jabu Motsweni’s full story.

Also read: GRAPHIC CONTENT: Dead man found in river – passersby stoll past

Mr Motsweni identified the body as Mr Lindo Khuhle Motsweni at the scene. He shared a surname with the deceased but bore no relation to him. When he spoke to the police, he withheld his own identification out of fear of being arrested for breaking parole.

Mr Jabu Motsweni and the deceased both lived on the river bank and a friendship started after they realised they shared last names. He informed the police of the deceased’s name and told them that Mr Lindo Khuhle Motsweni originally came from Siyabusa and had family in Stoffberg yet the police have still not identified the body.

• In another incident, the body of Mr Willem Janse van Rensburg was also found next to the Klein Olifants river. Mr Janse van Rensburg’s left arm had been severed from his body and the police who investigated the scene, could not confirm how the arm was detached or who it belonged to.

Also read: (Graphic content) Body found next to river with arm torn off

The Editor of www.mobserver.co.za, Mr Tobie van den Bergh, visited the scene several days after the investigation and found a bloodied knife in the bushes.

See a video of the crime scene here:

https://www.facebook.com/MiddelburgObserver/videos/1521172944641163/

Mr Janse van Rensburg’s body also remained unidentified for quite some time, until the funeral services came forward and informed the police that they found Mr Janse van Rensburg’s Identity Document in the pocket of the clothes he was wearing.

The I.D card that was found on the body of Mr Willem Janse van Rensburg by the funeral services.

• In a recent road rage incident, three innocent men were arrested after being accused of assaulting and killing Mr Xolisile Ndzongana.

The three men arrived at the scene after the altercation took place and made the fact known to the police. After video footage of the incident was obtained by www.mobserver.co.za, the police was informed of the new evidence but the investigator excluded the video from the docket.

The footage was handed over to the state prosecutor, who decided to drop charges against the three men as it clearly showed they were not involved in the incident. The docket was sent back to the police for further investigation.

Also read: VIDEO: Road rage incident – This is what happened before young man died

Mr Xolisile Ndzongana who died after a street fight.

• Mr Gerhard Coetzer, was shot and killed at a house party in Walter Sisulu Street on the 27th of April.

Mr Coetzer’s wife, Bianca, told the police that she saw one of the gentlemen at the party play with a firearm when a shot went off. She stood up to take her son out of the pool when another shot went off and her husband collapsed. Mr Coetzer’s son, Ronaldo, witnessed the whole event.

Also read: Body found one week after accident

Upon investigation, the police were informed that Mr Coetzer was shot in an armed robbery. Bianca Coetzer told the police about the gun wielding gentleman and of her son who witnessed his father’s death, yet Mr Gerhard Coetzer’s shooter is still at large.

Also read: What really happened when Gerhard Coetzer was killed?

After months of nightmares and trauma, Ronaldo Coetzer has finally been seen by a Forensic Social Worker who will do an assessment of his account.