Cape Town- Police are investigating a case of attempted murder after a Philippi mother was allegedly assaulted and nearly drowned at a Franschhoek restaurant when she was accused of stealing a cell phone.
In a counter case, police are investigating common assault and malicious damage to property registered for investigation by Ntombizodwa Sephoko’s alleged attacker.
According to Sephoko, an act of kindness turned into a nightmare after she was allegedly attacked and almost drowned by a man at the Savoye Restaurant at Vrede en Lust in Franschhoek.
Sephoko, a hairdresser, said that on April 16 she had visited the restaurant with her two friends.
“My friend was busy with the receptionist enquiring about the party she wanted to throw for her child. Myself and my other friend then walked around the place and took some videos, it's a very beautiful place so I was taking pictures and videos.
As I was walking towards the pool I saw a family dining, they were praying before they could eat. I saw a cell phone on the floor, not far from the table and as I went in to pick it up so that I may ask whether or not it belonged to them, I was knocked on the head and fell right into the swimming pool.
“Before I could grasp what was happening I was being beaten and drowned and I kept trying to ask for a chance to explain myself, but I was being sworn at,” she said.
Sephoko said that a white man and his family were swearing at her and accusing her of trying to steal a cell phone. “He was swearing at me and called me the K-word and said that he ‘doesn't like K*****s’ because they steal,” she said.
She said on visiting a doctor she reported various injuries including an injured knee and split lip.
“I'm now unable to work because I can't stand for long. I get flashbacks. He was being racist and I was only trying to give back a cell phone I had picked up,” she said.
Restaurant owner Etienne Buys said that he was called to the restaurant and told that there was an incident. “I was told that the lady attempted to steal his wife’s cell phone and the man tackled the woman and they both fell into the pool.
There was obviously an incident in the pool which I didn't witness, so we called the police. The one party agreed she tried to steal a cell phone and the other party then tackled her and she got injured.
We unfortunately have tricky cameras that when new footage comes in the previous gets deleted and when the police came to view the footage it had been wiped out. We are working with the police,” he said.
Police spokesperson FC Van Wyk said a case of attempted murder was registered at Groot Drakenstein SAPS.
“According to the reported complaint, she and friends were at a farm in Simondium. A group of people were busy praying when she noticed a cellular telephone on the floor.
She then picked it up and waited for the people to finish praying. When she asked to whom the cell phone belonged she was attacked by the accused and pushed into the swimming pool.
The accused also jumped in and started to strangle her and tried to drown her. The accused’s wife then joined to separate her husband from the complainant.”
Van Wyk said a common assault and malicious damage to property case was also registered for investigation by Sephoko’s alleged attacker.
“According to the man, he and his family asked his mother-in-law to pray for the food. When they saw an unknown female taking something out of his wife’s bag. The woman (Sephoko) then pushed him into the swimming pool and slapped him. The woman (Sephoko) then damaged his wife’s cellular telephone,” he said.
Both parties were arrested and both cases are still under investigation, he said.
Attempts to get hold of the man accused of attempted murder were unsuccessful.
Cape Times