Over 900 die in police custody in a year
2013-03-04 07:23
East London - About 932 people died in police custody in
South Africa in 2011-12, a report by the Independent Police Investigative
Directorate (Ipid) has revealed.
According to the Daily Dispatch on Monday, the Ipid annual
report states that KwaZulu-Natal had 268 deaths with Gauteng second at 217
deaths and the Eastern Cape third with 120 deaths.
The report also states that the number of deaths in police
custody has substantially increased over the past decade.
Taxi driver incident
Meanwhile, eight police officers implicated in the death of
an East Rand minibus taxi driver are expected to appear in the Daveyton
Magistrate's Court on Monday.
The two warrant officers and six constables face a murder
charge following the death of Mido Macia while in police custody.
The officers allegedly tied 27-year-old Macia to the back of
a police van and dragged him along a street in Daveyton on Tuesday.
Macia, a taxi driver and Mozambican national, died at the
local police station's cells several hours later. His body was found by a
police officer on Tuesday night.
A post mortem revealed he died of head and internal
injuries.
Ipid spokesperson Moses Dlamini said police reported that
they had earlier found Macia wrongfully parked on a road and ordered him to
move.
Macia's death caused a public outcry against police
brutality.
The Dispatch reported that the Ipid was also investigating
the death of a policeman who died in police custody at the Barkly East police
station in January, a day after he was detained for allegedly being drunk.
- SAPA
