WATCH: Tembisa woman to sue police for unlawful arrest
'I was alone and surrounded by rats, flies and the smell of faeces. I am so confused. I feel harassed, humiliated and traumatised,' said Moeketsi.
File image: iStock
A Tembisa woman plans to sue Ivory Park police for unlawful arrest and defamation of character after she was arrested for a matter the courts had already disposed of.
According to Matseliso Moeketsi, she was arrested on 31 January in Tembisa by Ivory Park police officers, who used an expired summons to back up her arrest.
Moeketsi said the officers did not have a warrant of arrest and, instead, showed an appearance before the court document dated 7 September, 2018.
“They showed me a document from two years ago, which was reviewed before the court,” said Moeketsi. “After my visit to the Pretoria district office, it was confirmed the document was invalid.”
After spending the weekend in a holding cell, she was told the matter had not appeared on the court roll and she was sent home.
“I was pushed into the police van and spent three days in a holding cell.
“I was alone and surrounded by rats, flies and the smell of faeces.
“I am so confused. I feel harassed, humiliated and traumatised,” said Moeketsi.
According to the Criminal Procedure Act, a police officer may only carry out an arrest without a warrant if witnessing a crime or when there is reasonable suspicion that a person has committed a schedule one crime, such as rape, robbery or arson.
Moeketsi claimed she questioned the station commander on the reason for her arrest, but he told her he was not permitted to discuss matters with detainees.
“I have lost hope in the police of our city. They are abusing their power,” Moeketsi said. “I question how many other people have been treated this way by Ivory Park police officers.”
Moeketsi said she had been detained at the time that she was supposed to apply for a masters bursary in communication science.
Her mother, Jacinta Mokgabodi, said she did not believe her daughter would be involved in any criminal matters, and was just as confused about her arrest.
“My daughter is focused on her education,” Mokgabodi said.
Ivory Park police denied any knowledge of the matter and failed to respond to further communication from The Citizen.
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