Video: Cover up? VIP protection officer’s son finally in North West court

Allegations of police officers covering for their colleagues are in the spotlight as a teen finally made his first appearance in the Brits Magistrate’s Court earlier today.

The 19-year-old boy is accused of being responsible for the crash that claimed the life of Patrick Jewell (65), who died nearly three weeks after the collision on September 21, 2021.

According to a statement by AfriForum, the teen’s father is a captain in the police’s VIP Protection Unit.

“Nearly three years after a deadly crash that cost the life of an elderly Brits man, the teenager who allegedly stole his father’s car for a joyride with his friends, has appeared in court,” the statement says.

The organisation adds the teen, who was 16 years old at the time of the incident, has been charged with culpable homicide and driving a vehicle without a licence. Because of Section 154(3) of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977, the teen cannot be named as he was a minor at the time of the incident.

The incident

On the day of the crash, Jewell was on the pavement outside his house loading water bottles into his Hyundai i10 to water the flowers at his wife’s gravesite.

“Surveillance footage shows a white BMW X5 speeding around a corner, losing control and colliding with the small car where Jewell was standing. Jewell was critically injured and transported to hospital, where he died 20 days later,” the statement explains.

His daughter, Jackie Jewell, obtained footage of the crash and the contact details of the person whose footage it was.

“This was provided to the investigating officer. Six months later, he had still not obtained the [original] video footage. Further, the investigating officer had not collected an affidavit from an eyewitness, which was drafted six weeks after the incident,” the statement reads.

Jackie then opted to approach AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit.

“In May 2022, having learnt of the investigating officer’s conduct, the unit filed a formal complaint against the investigating officer with provincial police management. By July, having not received any meaningful response from the provincial office, the unit officially complained to the police’s national office. It was then that the matter was properly investigated.

“The docket was eventually sent to court in May last year and a decision was made to prosecute,” the statement adds.

Warning: The footage below may upset sensitive viewers

Reaction

The unit’s spokesperson, Barry Bateman, says the matter would never have been placed on the court roll had it not been for AfriForum’s efforts.

“Too often we deal with cases where detectives fail to do what they are duty-bound to do, which is to investigate crime. In this matter, we suspect that the status of the father of the accused was a factor in this failure to investigate. This offends the principle that everyone is equal before the law, and can simply not be tolerated. It was the private prosecution unit that ensured the SAPS gathered all the relevant evidence and presented a docket to the NPA,” adds Bateman.

The victim’s daughter is relieved that progress is finally being made.

“I’m very happy, but I have mixed emotions because you don’t know what to expect. But something is happening now and we can go to trial and there can be some sort of justice for my dad. AfriForum helped me the whole way… pushing this case, getting more information and making sure that everything was 100%. I can’t say the same for the police,” adds Jackie.

The matter was postponed to April 10.