Cop dog handlers guilty
2003-03-04 18:55
Pretoria - Two more former police dog handlers have been found guilty in the Pretoria High Court on charges of assault and attempting to defeat the ends of justice.
The charges related to an incident in 1998 when three illegal immigrants were attacked by police dogs during a "training" exercise.
Four other former police dog handlers were previously found guilty on similar charges.
On Tuesday, Judge Dion Basson rejected claims by Nicolaas Kenneth Loubser and Dino Guiotto, both 27, that they were "forced" by the more experienced policemen to participate.
He found them guilty on three charges of assault with the intent to do grievous bodily harm and attempting to defeat the ends of justice by attempting to cover up their involvement.
Their four former colleagues - Kobus Smith, Christo Koch, Robbie Henzen and Eugene Truter - were earlier sentenced to between four and five years imprisonment for their role.
Smith is presently awaiting the outcome of an appeal against his sentence.
'Live tackle'
Basson said video footage of the incident, which was shown to the court, contained no indications that Loubser and Guiotto were threatened and clearly showed that they participated willingly.
It was unlikely that policemen would threaten their own colleagues and both had known about the type of exercise. The video, in fact, kicked off with a statement that it was a training exercise to teach Guiotto's dog, Jerry-Lee, to do a "live tackle".
The judge said it was also unlikely that the video would have been made to "intimidate" the two men.
Racism had also played a role in the assault on the illegal immigrants, Judge Basson added.
The video showed Loubser urging his dog and another police dog to bite the victims and depicted Guiotto as one of the main participants. Guiotto repeatedly urged his dog to bite the victims, he was also seen assaulting one of the Mozambicans.
Guiotto's claim that he was trying to protect the man did not hold water.
The judge criticised the two men for adapting their evidence. It was also clear that both had not hesitated to make false entries into a pocket book and the dog register about the incident and had also not hesitated to put a false version before the court.
The two men showed no emotion when the judge handed down his ruling.
- SAPA