WATCH: City of Cape Town investigates traffic cops brutality claim

A screengrab from the video posted to Facebook appears to show a man being thrown to the ground by traffic cops. Picture: Facebook

A screengrab from the video posted to Facebook appears to show a man being thrown to the ground by traffic cops. Picture: Facebook

Published Mar 21, 2018

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Cape Town - The City of Cape Town is investigating claims of police brutality against several traffic officers.

The investigation stems from a Facebook post by Bashiera Allie, which reads: "Guys share this. Traffic Police brutality against my dad. #policeabuse #unlawfularrest #corrupttrafficcops for the explanation of what happened from my dad see the second uncut video. 

"We are not hiding anything and we commend the cops that do good as we need them in our community but we stand up to corruption as should we all. The case was seen in court today and thrown out. Traffic cops cannot arrest you they can only detain you until SAPS comes #knowyourrights."

The videos along with the post appear to show a man being violently arrested. The man is seen to be thrown to the ground and screams out in pain as the officers place him under arrest.

In the second video, the arrested man explains what had happened, from inside a police cell.

The City of Cape Town's safety and security chief JP Smith said it take allegations of police brutality against its members very seriously.

"The City of Cape Town has been made aware of footage where several of our Traffic Officers are involved in placing a person under arrest. The allegation is one of police brutality. 

"The City takes these allegations very seriously and the matter is receiving urgent attention, including a full investigation to determine what exactly happened. 

"The overall conduct of the officers in terms of their behaviour at the scene, their professionalism, and compliance with the law will have to be determined. We will also have to get the officers's version of the events.

"The City calls on anyone with information about the incident to come forward and assist us in our investigation. This investigation will be completed in addition to whatever criminal investigation the South African Police Service is conducting into the matter," Smith said.

@TheCapeArgus

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