Durban - IN A strange sequence of events, Durban police have opened a case of defeating the ends of justice after a 22-year-old man was robbed at knifepoint of the cellphone he had bought two weeks before.
Andy Ndleleni said that on December 11 he was stabbed as he fought off two men who wanted his cellphone. Two men passing by helped him. A security guard at a nearby school also assisted him.
Police arrived and the two robbers were arrested while the victim was rushed to hospital with police telling him to open a case once he had been discharged.
When he opened a case he had expected to get his phone back from police. He discovered, however, that no one had been arrested for stabbing and robbing him and there was no cellphone to be found.
Ndleleni was given a letter by police which said that should he see his robbers he could contact the police to arrest them.
The letter also contained a case number which stated that a robbery and attempted murder case had been opened.
The Daily News sent a query to police quoting the case number.
Spokesperson Captain Nqobile Gwala confirmed it involved a case of robbery on December 11 and had been opened at Durban Central police station.
“No arrest was made or any cellphone recovered. A case of defeating the ends of justice was opened at Durban Central SAPS.”
Explaining how it all unfolded, Ndleleni said all he wanted was his phone back or for the police to give him money equivalent of the value of his Huawei Y6S.
“I don’t want those police who put those thieves in the back of their van to be arrested because that will not get my phone back. I want my phone back. What happened to my phone when those two were put into the police van? Where were they taken because it was not to the police station,” Ndleleni said.
He was discharged from hospital on December 12 and went to the Broad Street Police Station to open a case.
On December 14 he was contacted by an officer from the Durban Central Police Station asking him if he would be able to identify his robbers.
“I asked him if these suspects had been released. He replied that he didn’t know, so the next day I went there myself and that’s when I learnt that they were not in custody. I was given a point-out letter for their arrest should I see them. How is their arrest going to get my phone back?”
Criminal attorney William Booth said a pointing out notice was given where the suspects had not been arrested after a case had been opened.
“If he (Ndleleni) says they were arrested with his property on them, there should be a record of this at the police station. The victim can also ask to see the station commander asking him to facilitate a sit-down with these officers. He can also lay a civil complaint against the police and sue them for damages.”
Daily News