Province to help slain taxi man’s son

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Cellphone footage of the police brutality incident in Daveyton. Screengrab: YouTube

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 Johannesburg - The Gauteng government on Thursday said it would help the son of the Daveyton taxi driver who died in police custody, an official said.

“We learned that he had only one dependent in SA, his seven-year-old son. We will take care of him for the duration of this year until we are guided by the family on whether he goes back to Mozambique or not,” premier Nomvula Mokonyane's spokesman Thebe Mohatle said.

Mokonyane visited Mido Macia's family in Daveyton, on the East Rand, on Friday. She sent her condolences to the family and condemned the police's actions. Mohatle said the provincial government would work with the South African embassy in Mozambique to help the family with arrangements for taking Macia's body home.

Meanwhile, eight policemen implicated in the killing of Macia, 27, were arrested on Friday. The suspects, two warrant officers and six constables, were arrested at the Benoni police station, the Independent Police Investigative Directorate said.

“The suspects will remain in custody until they appear in court. The Ipid is committed to ensuring that the suspects are held accountable and brought before the courts,” spokesman Moses Dlamini said.

All eight would face a murder charge. They were expected to appear in the Daveyton Magistrate's Court on Monday.

Macia was tied to the back of a police van and dragged along a street in Daveyton, on the East Rand, on Tuesday. An eyewitness filmed the assault. He died in the local police station's cells later that day. - Sapa