Man locks up drunk cop
2013-01-16 15:34
Lunga Biyela, The Witness
Pietermaritzburg - A KwaZulu-Natal man arrested an allegedly
drunk police officer and locked him up in the back of his police van after
watching him drive recklessly through the streets of Pietermaritzburg.
Russell George, of Prestbury, said he was coming down Stott
Street and about to enter Mayor’s Walk at about 20:00 on Sunday when he noticed
a police van driving fast and recklessly.
“He was driving towards oncoming traffic as he turned into
Victoria Road.
Accident
“At this point I was concerned about the safety of other
road users,” self-employed George told The Witness.
“He suddenly jammed on his brakes and came to a complete
stop.
“I got out of my car and went towards him and I asked him if
he knew what he was doing. He started his car and carried on driving,” he said.
Continuing to drive recklessly, the policeman turned into
Logan Road and came to a stop at the Howard Road intersection.
George decided it would be best to call 10111. He was told
the police would be there shortly.
“After five minutes, no one had arrived. So I jumped out of
my car and I approached the driver’s side and asked him to come out. He looked
at me and I could smell that he had been drinking.
“I asked him again, and he refused.
“I then grabbed his keys, pulled him out and locked him in
the back of his own van,” George said.
He added that the police van was badly damaged, as if it had
been involved in an accident.
Birthday celebrations
Khanyi Mnikathi, a witness who lives on Howard Road, also
said the policeman was drunk when he was pulled out of the vehicle.
She said: “He was quite sloshed. He was weak enough for him
to be pulled out and into the back of the van.
“When he was put into the back [of the van], he started
crying.”
She said the police officers who arrived there “were quite
embarrassed”.
“It was ironic because it was a citizen who put him in the
back of his own van,” she said.
Mnikathi said that when her mother approached the officer to
ask him what happened, he said he had been celebrating his birthday and that
all his friends had bought him a bottle of alcohol. “He did not deny that he
was drunk,” she said.
Another witness, who gave his name as Sbu, agreed that the
officer was very drunk.
The policeman was taken to Loop Street police station.
It was alleged that police had recently been called to a
nightclub in the city where the officer had held up his girlfriend at gunpoint.
George said that while he was giving his statement, “two men
came into the station to report that a police van had crashed into [their
vehicle] and fled”.
Charges
Police spokesperson Joey Jeevan confirmed that the policeman
had been taken into custody.
“He will be charged with driving while under the influence
of alcohol,” she said.
“While he was in custody, we received a report that he had
been involved in a collision in Prestbury.
“He is also going to be investigated for reckless and
negligent driving,” said Jeevan.
She added that police were aware of an incident “where there
was a problem with his girlfriend”.
She said an investigation into an assault was pending and
that the officer’s firearm had been taken away.
Zweli Mnisi, spokesperson for Police Minister Nathi
Mthethwa, said justice should prevail and that the investigation should take
place without prejudice.
