She ID’s attackers but the cops ‘turn blind eye’

POLOKWANE – Two women who brutally assaulted a Ladanna woman with knuckledusters and robbed her, were allowed to walk off without any questions by the police officials responding to the scene, in spite of the two suspects being pointed out to them.

Natasha Burger said she was on her way to an ATM in Witklip Street in Ladanna on Monday when the assault occurred.

She said two women approached her from across the road. “They demanded my cellphone and then one woman started hitting me in the face. She wore knuckledusters and I immediately started bleeding badly,” Burger told Review.

“I gave my full cooperation and they had no reason to assault me, but the women just kept hitting me.”

Burger said a crowd of onlookers gathered around them and she managed to take her cellphone back from one of the women. “The two women simply walked away as if nothing had happened,” she said. Natasha suffered bruises to her legs and several cuts and wounds to her face. She also has difficulty using her left eye since the attack.

According to Burger, the police proved to be of little help to her. “Two police officials showed up and I pointed out the women who attacked me. The officials simply left without even questioning my attackers. I could not lay a charge immediately because I had to go to hospital for stitches.

“Considering that I am still waiting for the police to follow-up about two other incidents of crime that I reported almost a year ago, I don’t see how laying a charge this time would help me,” she said.

Burger said she felt that crime was escalating in the city and that criminals were becoming more aggressive. “I heard of people who were threatened with knives and in one of the most recent attacks that I know of, a man was stabbed near a drinking place in this area,” Burger said.

“I think criminals are more aggressive because they do not fear the police. This means the public must protect themselves. What will happen when they take the law into their own hands?” she asked.

Polokwane police spokesperson, Capt Ntobeng Phala, urged residents not to carry large amounts of cash with them or leave valuable items out in the open as this might encourage criminals to strike.

Phala said Burger should open a case with the police and officials could then investigate and react accordingly.

“We cannot simply go around arresting people just because they are pointed out by somebody else. Only when a police official sees a crime being committed or when a case is opened, can we step in,” he explained.

He said police officials who did not respond to residents’ calls for help would be dealt with accordingly. He added that when there was a situation where police did not assist, people should take note of the vehicle registration number and the vehicle number on the back to make sure that the police officials concerned were brought to book.