“I was at the wrong place at the wrong time,” says Linda Mlindo.
This 28-year-old Pollak Park resident fell victim to assault when he went to buy airtime at a shop in Springs West Road, Wright Park, last Monday.
When he arrived at the shop, he witnessed a physical attacks between a few people, but he didn’t want to get involved and went into the shop to purchase airtime.
“As I left the shop, I was brutally attacked by more than six men for no reason at all,” he says.
He claims the men passed racist remarks and allegedly started kicking him and hitting him in the face.
Upon telling them that he has no problem with them, they allegedly continued to assault him until he was unconscious.
“I was kicked and received several punches in my face,” he says.
He says when he regained consciousness he went home to get help.
The men allegedly robbed him of his money.
Mlindo went to a nearby hospital for treatment, but he claims he didn’t get much help there and was told to go back the next morning.
With a headache and a bloody face, he went back home where his landlord Cynthia Taylor, gave him tablets to ease the pain.
It is a week later and he still suffers from headaches and his eyes are extremely sensitive to brightness after the attack.
Taylor says Mlindo is a quiet, honest and gentle man who never looks for trouble.
“He works hard for his family,” she says.
She tried to help but were only able to give him tablets to help with the pain.
She feels the attack on Mlindo was malicious and absolutely unnecessary.
However, he did open an assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm case at the Springs Police Station.
Taylor says Mlindo is rather overwhelmed that so many people have shown they care since the attack.
She claims he said “it is heartening” and makes him feel proud that “we as South Africans are not all bad and many care”.
