Cape Town – Five Vredenburg police officers have been arrested for murder, says the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid).
In a statement, Ipid spokesperson Ndileka Cola said the directorate’s rural strategic interventions led to the arrest of the officers on Wednesday.
On October 23, the officers allegedly arrested Jason Heyns and assaulted him before taking him to hospital for medical treatment.
Heyns was immediately transferred from Vredenburg Hospital to Groote Schuur Hospital, where he died seven days later from his injuries.
“SAPS failed to report this incident as required by the Ipid Act. The directorate later learnt through the deceased’s family, which reported the death as a result of a police action case on November 3, 2020,” Cola said.
An in-depth Ipid investigation into the incident led to the identification and arrest of the five police officers, she added.
They are in custody and set to appear at the Vredenburg Magistrate’s Court on a murder charge.
In a separate incident, two police officers were sentenced to 18 years’ imprisonment at the Palm Ridge Magistrate’s Court for murder and 10 years for torture on Wednesday.
Constable GA Dintwe, 35, and Constable D Johnson, 42, were convicted and sentenced for the murder of 43-year-old Innocent Sebediela in 2018.
The pair were also declared unfit to possess a firearm.
African News Agency (ANA)