Image: Alex Wong/Getty Images/AFP
Following reports of police brutality, allegedly at the hands of the Edenvale SAPS on Friday, newer allegations of police brutality surfaced last night on social media, Joburg East Express reports.
A video shared on Twitter by Yusuf Abramjee last night shows a woman pulled off a chair and then dragged across the floor of the Jeppe police station.
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Bedfordview and Edenvale News reported earlier this week that the case against two DA ward councillors and community members accused of assaulting Edenvale police officers was postponed to September 6. The same ward councillors and community members, in turn, accused Edenvale SAPS of assault. The Edenvale matter was also reported to the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid).
Jeppe Police Station spokesperson Warrant Officer Richard Munyai confirmed that an altercation took place at the station last night.
“The woman in the video visited the station to certify documents, but she did not have the original documents.
“The officer requested the original documents, and he also pointed out that only a certain number of documents can be certified at one time. She exceeded the number of documents, and she did not have the originals. An altercation ensued, and the woman assaulted the officer, and other police officers stepped in to stop the altercation.”
Police management condemned the incident in a statement released on Thursday morning.
“It is totally unacceptable that a member of the public, more so a woman, should be ill-treated in such a manner. It is also appalling that a woman is manhandled by the very people who are supposed to be prioritising her safety,” the provincial police commissioner said.
The commissioner added that an urgent departmental investigation was under way.