Durban - While the family of gunshot victim Aavishkar Sadanan await the outcome of an IPID investigation into his shooting, they have also secured legal counsel on the back of charges being laid against him.
Sadanan, 25, an IT professional in Pietermaritzburg, was shot during a car chase a week ago and is currently recuperating in hospital.
The bullet entered his back, bruised his spleen and lodged dangerously close to his heart. Sadanan underwent surgery to remove the bullet, and is in a stable condition.
He was allegedly drag racing with his friends at Prilla Mills in Mountain Rise, a known drag race hot spot, when police swooped on them.
Sadanan and a friend allegedly tried to evade police, who chased them around Mountain Rise.
Police allegedly opened fire on Sadanan’s 1.4 VW Golf VeloCiti, wounding him. According to police sources, 18 bullet holes were found on the vehicle.
Sadanan’s friend, Wayne Moodley, told the Daily News that police left Sadanan lying bleeding on the road for more than 20 minutes before he was taken to hospital for treatment.
Sadanan’s family laid a charge of attempted murder against the police in question, who in turn laid charges of attempted murder and reckless and negligent driving against Sadanan.
The Daily News approached the family for comment, but were told they had sought legal counsel and were not inclined to speak to the media.
Police confirmed on Monday that the internal investigation into the shooting was still under way and that no arrests had yet been made.
The other driver who was allegedly racing against Sadanan, Nadeem Kader, appeared in the city’s district court last week on a charge of reckless and negligent driving.
He was released on bail and has laid counter charges of assault against the police.
Daily News