IPID has launched an investigation after cops allegedly abduct, assault and shot a man in Mpumalanga.
Brenton Geach, Gallo Images
- A case of assault is under investigation after several police officers allegedly assaulted a man and questioned him about a stolen police firearm.
- It is believed the victim was assaulted, shot and tied up.
- It also surfaced that the alleged attackers, had earlier kidnapped, assaulted and stolen cellphones belonging to two women they had an encounter with prior to attacking the man.
A case of assault is under investigation by the police watchdog, the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID), after several police officers allegedly assaulted a man and questioned him about a stolen police firearm in KwaMhlanga on Saturday.
According to the police, the victim was asleep at his house in KwaMhlanga when he was awoken by unknown people who identified themselves as police officers.
“When he opened the door, the victim was severely assaulted and, in the process, questioned about a stolen police firearm,” said police spokesperson Brigadier Leonard Hlathi in a statement.
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It is believed that the men shoved the victim into the boot of their car and drove with him to nearby bushes where they further assaulted and shot him, tied him up with cable ties before abandoning him.
He said the victim managed to crawl his way to safety and was found by a passer-by who notified the police.
Hlathi told News24 that the victim was still in hospital and was yet to provide a statement.
“The officers involved have not yet been identified,” said Hlathi.
Pictures of the victim have since been circulating on social media platforms, showing bruises to his lower body.
Bra @tumisole please assist this gentle man, who was taken from his home in the early hours of Sunday by Kwa Mhlanga Police Officers. He was then taken from Kwa Mhlanga to Valbank, assaulted and then shot twice before been left there in a vele.@MbuyiseniNdlozi pic.twitter.com/NMoGHzM0eW
— Kgomotso (@KG_Ka_Zilonde) July 20, 2020
“It also surfaced that the very same men, had earlier kidnapped, assaulted as well as robbed cellphones belonging to two women they had an encounter with prior attacking the male victim,” said Hlathi.
Provincial Commissioner, Lieutenant General Mondli Zuma, assured the community that if police members were involved in criminality, they would be dealt with harshly according to the prescripts of the law.
The police have since opened cases and the IPID will carry out the investigations.
