Police are investigating a complaint that they took no action although warned of attacks on the N2 an hour before a rock was thrown at a car, severely injuring a Cape Town mother, on Thursday.
Rosebank resident Leonard Moss said that immediately after his car was attacked he called the police's 10111 emergency number to alert them.
He believes that action taken by the police could have averted the attack an hour later on Shereen Mase, who is fighting for her life in hospital.
"I was travelling from Swellendam about 9pm," Moss said.
| 'I saw it coming before it happened' |
"I saw a road sign indicating the airport. There were two guys. One had a striped cap and striped jersey. The other, standing at the side of the airport road, threw a rock, which hit my car on the petrol tank cover."
"I called the police's 10111 number. But they kept me hanging on for 10 to 15 minutes while they took my details. I had to hang up as I was using my cellphone and was running out of air time."
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"The police could have prevented this. There were streams of cars behind me and I felt I needed to help as many people as possible."
The Executive Mayor of Cape Town, Nomaindia Mfeketo called on Monday for patrols to be intensified on the N2 "hell run", where there have been many attacks in recent years. "These robbers should not be allowed to get away with something so terrible," she said.
Provincial commissioner of police Mwzandile Petros denied that patrols on the N2 had been stopped.
"We have two vehicles patrolling each of the freeways, including the N2. This complements what the traffic department is doing."
Petros said Moss's complaint would be followed up and that the records of the police's radio control centre were being checked.
But Moss, who met Mase's husband on Monday, said: "I want to take this as far as possible. If I close my eyes, I can still picture the guy who threw the rock. I feel sorry for the injured woman and her family. It could have been prevented. I saw it coming before it happened."
Speaking from the Chris Barnard Memorial Hospital, Mase's husband, Gordon, said: "She went for a scan and doctors said one side of her forehead is swollen. She'll be in the ICU for a few more days."
- This article was originally published on page 1 of Cape Times on May 11, 2004
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