An alleged truck hijacking case against a Midrand Police Station officer has been withdrawn, but the allegations and his arrest have taken a toll on him and his family.
The officer was arrested in October 2015, along with other suspects, after he was pointed out while at work by the complainant who was at the police station to report the hijacking.
The wife of the police officer – both names have been withheld as the case against him has been withdrawn – said her husband was detained at Krugersdorp Police Station where she alleged he did not have visitation rights.
Click here to read: Midrand police constable arrested for alleged truck hijacking
In an emotional interview with Midrand Reporter she said, “I was at work when I learnt of my husband’s arrest and found out I could not immediately see him as he was held at Krugersdorp Police Station.”
She expressed disappointment at how the case was handled. “Midrand Police Station did not handle the case well, my husband was arrested after being pointed out by a complainant at the station. They treated him like a criminal, yet they have known him for so long.
“There should have been an ID parade and the allegations investigated fully before my husband was arrested. Our family has suffered, he is still undergoing counselling and taking medication for stress.” The officer’s wife, however, added that the family had also been overwhelmed by the support from people in the community who stood by them and expressed shock at the allegations against her husband, and the family is glad the case against him has been withdrawn.
Midrand Police Station Colonel Steven Moodley revealed that the case was not handled by the station but by the Gauteng Police Province Investigation Unit. “There was no need for an ID parade,” he said.
Click here to read: Policeman out on bail after alleged truck hijacking
“The accused was pointed out by the complainant and, in many cases, accidental pointing out also does not require an ID parade. It is a serious allegation when a police officer is accused of a crime. I had to act and inform Major General [Zodwa] Molefe of the case and she and a team from provincial police took it over.”
Moodley denied the allegation that he instructed police to detain the officer at Krugersdorp Police Station and when asked if the officer would be reinstated he said, “There is a disciplinary process in place and other parallel processes involved. The officer was never suspended, he was given notice of suspension and opted to take many sick leave days.”
Krugersdorp Police Station police spokesperson Sergeant Tshepiso Mashale confirmed that the officer was detained at the station’s police cells and also appeared in court. Mashale explained that the station did not allow visitors over the weekend at the cells, but detainees could be visited on Monday to Friday between 12 noon and 1pm. “The suspect could have been visited on Monday at the times mentioned but he was taken to court in the morning,” said Mashale.
“This order applies to each suspect detained at our cells. As much as there is no visitation over the weekend, the suspect has the right to make contact with their family members.”
Advocate Herman Broodryk, deputy director of Public Prosecutions Gauteng Local Division, Johannesburg said the officer could not be prosecuted as he was not satisfied that there was a reasonable prospect of a successful prosecution. Broodryk added, “That decision was based on that the accused proffered an alibi for the relevant period which was corroborated by several other witnesses. The complainant could not initially provide a proper description of the suspects who had robbed him and he also never attended a formal identification parade.
“The complainant’s impromptu identification of the suspect at the police station… was clearly not made in ideal circumstances and does not appear to pass the threshold of reliable identification.”
