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- Thousands of students descended on Clifton Beach on Friday for valedictory celebrations.
- A young man was assaulted but chose not to lodge a complaint with police.
- Law enforcement arrested three people and confiscated a large amount of alcohol.
Officers had their hands full on Friday when end-of-the-academic-year celebrations turned violent after large groups of students flocked to Clifton Beach in Cape Town.
Three people were also arrested, amid efforts to confiscate alcohol and maintain law and order.
Videos went viral of a young man being hit with a stick, beaten and kicked by a group on Clifton Fourth Beach.
While speculation was rife that he had died from his injuries, police spokesperson Colonel Andrè Traut said "no murder was reported".
He added Camps Bay police and other law enforcement agencies responded to an alleged fight on Friday night.
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"It was established that an individual was assaulted but he refused to lodge an official complaint.
"The situation where a large number of young people gathered was monitored and no further incidents were reported."
Ward councillor Nicola Jowell said "over 4 000" students were there to celebrate their valedictories.
She told News24 that City of Cape Town law enforcement, metro police, traffic and police were in attendance.
City law enforcement spokesperson Wayne Dyason said a large group of students were at Clifton and Camps Bay beaches for celebrations.
Arrested
"Officers had their hands full controlling the crowd. Three suspects were arrested," he added.
One person was arrested for interfering with officers after he had encouraged others to urinate in public.
Another was arrested for riotous behaviour, assaulting an officer and malicious damage to property. A third person was arrested in Victoria Road, which is above Clifton's beaches.
Dyason said the man "was caught red-handed by officers jumping out of a taxi and removing the wheel trims of stationary vehicles and then jumping back into the taxi".
He shared photos of the large amounts of spirits, coolers and wine that were confiscated.
It is not the first time that end-of-year celebrations have turned sour in Clifton.
At the end of 2019, a 16-year-old boy was stabbed and killed near Clifton Beach.
Two months before that, 18-year-old UCT student Mhleli Cebo Mbatha was killed in an apparent robbery above Clifton Third Beach.
