Some angry Sand River community members allegedly severely beat a suspect who had allegedly been caught stealing cables from a panel beating business on May 26.
According to some locals, a number of houses were recently broken into and some of their belongings had been stolen. They accused the police of failing to respond quickly when they were contacted. The community members claimed they had informed them that they would search for the criminals and, if they were apprehended, would deal with them decisively.
“This suspect is one of the people who has been terrorising our community for several months,” said the locals. The man had been with a friend when they allegedly broke into a panel beating business in an attempt to steal cables. The owner and his brother pursued the suspects. One managed to flee after allegedly stabbing the owner and his brother, however the other one was apprehended. They tied him up and called the police, and also some community members to keep an eye on him while they rushed to the clinic for a medical check-up.
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“We realised that the police were taking too long to arrive, so we decide to beat him with sjambok while pouring cold water on him. The beating lasted three hours until we realised that he had soiled himself. We believe we taught him a lesson he will never forget. This sends a strong message to other criminals who are considering stealing from us. What irritates us is that he has been out on parole for four months, but is back to his old habits. The police must ensure that he is returned to jail, or we will kill him rather than allow him to steal from us,” the locals said.
A provincial police spokesperson, Colonel Donald Mdluli, was unavailable for comment at the time of publishing.
