Pretoria - A sergeant based at the Garsfontein police station was admitted to hospital after he was stoned during a raid on a shebeen in Pretoria’s notorious Plastic View informal settlement, while other officers came under attack while seizing alcohol at a shebeen in Jouberton, North West province over the weekend.
“The national commissioner of police, General Khehla John Sitole has called on police officers around the country to continue stamping the authority of the State. This after communities in areas in Gauteng and the North West province mobilised against police officers raiding illegal shebeens this past weekend,” police spokesman Brigadier Vish Naidoo said.
“In the first incident at about 2am on Friday (when) a sergeant stationed at Garsfontein police station was severely assaulted with stones by residents of the Plastic View informal settlement while they were closing illegal shebeens (drinking taverns). The sergeant was admitted to a local hospital where he received multiple stitches to open wounds to his head.”
In the second incident, police were conducting routine crime prevention duties including closing shebeens when they responded to a tip-off about a house where large quantities of alcohol were being stored and sold.
“Police raided the house but the owner fled. While police were loading the liquor into a police vehicle, the community quickly mobilised, then stormed the police van and started removing the liquor from the van,” said Naidoo.
“The police drove off to the station with about half of the liquor remaining in the vehicle. In the middle of the scuffle a suspect was seen throwing a bottle at the police bakkie, damaging it. The police opened a docket of (malicious damage to property) and we intend to add a charge of incitement of violence and disturbing police in the execution of their duties.”
Police commissioner Sitole said alcohol was at the heart of contact crimes and communities should support the police in clamping down on its illegal sale.
“The acts by these respective communities are unacceptable and should be condemned in the strongest possible terms", said Sitole.
"It is common knowledge that alcohol has been one of the biggest generators of contact crimes including gender based violence and femicide and communities should be rallying together against the illegal sale of such.”
Sitole instructed provincial commissioners to mobilise the force’s 72-hour activation plan, identify the people who assaulted and obstructed police in the execution of their duties and to bring them to book.
African News Agency (ANA)