Johannesburg - The family of Radovan Krejcir have hit out at the Department of Correctional Services over their alleged “inhumane treatment” of the fugitive Czech mobster.
They want better prison conditions for Krejcir, claiming his rights have been violated at Leeuwkop maximum security prison. Family spokesperson Marlene Krejcir claimed the 50-year-old had been battling in prison due to the “inhumane treatment” he received.
“His rights are being violated in countless ways,” she said. “He’s not allowed adequate health care, not allowed to contact his attorneys, not allowed to study as other inmates can, and is not able to properly prepare for his trials via monitor (for which he has a court order).
“He has four cases, all with well over 1000 pages and every time his cell is searched, they destroy the order of his notes and it’s impossible for him to prepare this way.”
Marlene said Krejcir had also been kept in solitary confinement for the past three years.
“An inmate is sent to solitary confinement for means of punishment and by law is not allowed to be kept in solitary confinement for longer than 30 days. He is being kept in a cell for 23 hours a day and doesn’t get adequate exercise.”
The family also claimed the department was ignoring court orders, which stated Krejcir should have an orthopaedic mattress for his back.
“He has been struggling with his back for many months and this has resulted in him not even being able to walk most days. The department just ignores us. He (Krejcir) does have a court order stating that he should have an orthopaedic mattress, this court order dates back well over a year and still nothing has happened.
“He has very limited access to call his family overseas, the cell is too small, the lighting in the cell has caused his eyes to deteriorate, the airflow in his cell is not up to standard. These are just to mention a few.”
Krejcir was convicted of attempted murder, kidnapping and dealing in drugs in 2015 and was sentenced to 35 years in jail. The family said their attempts to communicate with the department were ignored.
“They ignore us and do not respond to any of our emails, nor have they tried to resolve any of the complaints. As a family we are not asking for special conditions only for him. We’re only asking that his human rights are upheld and for him to be treated fairly.
“The situation is very hard and to make matters worse they have recently limited his number of calls so he is able to call us twice a month for 10 minutes. It’s not enough time to speak to his minor son he hasn’t seen for about five years now. The depatrment uses the same excuse for every inhumane/illegal thing they do to him - for ‘security reasons’.
“They use this every time because they know that this way they do not need to give further explanation as to why they are treating him this way.”
The department labelled the accusations “untrue and baseless”.
“It should be noted that the department will continue to provide the same humane incarceration to offenders, including Radovan Krejcir, without compromising their human rights and security,” spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo said.
The department said the family’s claim that Krejcir had not been allowed to call his attorneys was incorrect. “Radovan Krejcir is entitled to have visits and to make telephone calls. However, according to the departmental regulations, his visits and telephone calls are limited, just like any other offender.
“He has rights for visits from his legal representative as per appointment and by the approval by the head of correctional centre as determined by the departmental regulations and procedures.”
Nxumalo denied claims that Krejcir had no access to reading materials nor adequate health care. “Krejcir has reading materials in his cell. Some are even from the Czech Republic. We do provide healthcare services and where certain specialities are needed we then transfer inmates to external medical centres for treatment. So such an allegation is completely false.”
He is also said the family’s claims about solitary confinement were untrue. “Radovan Krejcir is accommodated in a single cell at a special-care unit, which also accommodates other offenders. This is not a solitary confinement cell.”