Pretoria - An unemployed man who had no money at all when he was arrested for the theft of a laptop out of a parked car on Madiba Street, Pretoria, will now be R500 000 richer.
The Gauteng High Court in Pretoria has found that the police did not verify whether he was, in fact, the thief when they locked him up.
Sello Lebelo instituted a damages claim against the police after he spent 16 days behind bars - first in a police cell and then in jail - before charges were withdrawn against him.
The bulk of the time spent behind bars was because he could not afford the R1000 bail set for him.
Judge Ronel Tolmay, in awarding him the damages, said the police had no reason for not freeing him on a warning.
She said the police had extensive powers and the courts must be astute to stand resolute against any abuse of these powers. “The courts should protect the right to freedom,” she said.
The judge added that courts should be careful not to value the dignity and right to freedom of a poor, unemployed and uneducated person as less important than those of a more fortunate person.
“If courts truly value the equality and dignity of human beings, they will be seen not only to acknowledge the suffering of vulnerable members of society, but will also proceed to protect the rights and dignity of vulnerable individuals.”
The judge said courts had to keep in mind that those who did not have the necessary resources very often also did not have the ability to fend for themselves.
“They are often vulnerable and left at the mercy of a system that often does not provide the necessary support to enable them to fight for their rights. Therefore, the fact that someone does not have any significant social standing should, in my view, not lead to the award of a lesser amount.”
Judge Tolmay said compensation of R500000 in this case was fair as one should not value the loss of dignity and freedom as trivial. She said from Roman law times, the right to liberty and freedom of a free man had been recognised as being a right that must be protected.
Lebelo told the court the conditions in jail were bad. Some inmates tried to sodomise him and he feared for his life. He tried to report this, but was hit with a baton on the back by the warden.
He said he feared for his life from inmates and wardens. Lebelo said when he once tried to phone his mother, he was threatened by an inmate with a broken bottle, wrapped in a cloth. He was throttled and had to pay the inmate with the airtime he had to stay alive.
A motorist who had parked her car in Madiba Street told police a laptop was stolen from her boot. It emerged that the thieves used the remote control of a gate to jam the signal of the vehicle when it was locked. This prevented it from being locked and the culprits simply opened the boot and took the laptop.
Various witnesses gave different versions to the police as to who stole the laptop. The police never investigated the discrepancies, but simply chose to arrest Lebelo when he was pointed out as being one of the culprits.