The Western Cape Director of Public Prosecutions, Nicolette Bell, and the Provincial Commissioner of the Western Cape, Lieutenant-General Thembisile Patekile, have addressed the arrest of 11 members of the Anti-Gang Unit (AGU).

These AGU members face serious charges, including murder, four counts of assault with the intent to inflict grievous bodily harm (GBH), four counts of kidnapping, and one count of torture.

The charges stem from the alleged kidnapping, torture, and murder of a Manenberg man, identified as alleged gangster Wade Price, and the assault of his friends during an apparent interrogation.

The alleged murder occurred on December 4, following an interrogation regarding a shooting incident that took place outside the Athlone Magistrate’s Court a week prior.

Due to a court ruling, the officers cannot be identified.

Three of the arrested AGU members appeared at the Athlone Magistrate’s Court on Monday for their formal bail application. The remaining eight members are scheduled to appear in court for their bail application on Thursday, December 19.

Bell said the AGU case remains under investigation. 

“Yes, 11 members were arrested. These 11 members are facing serious allegations. A murder was committed while on duty, in a heinous manner.

“SAPS officials must be trusted while performing their duties. There’s also the trust that the community must have that if somebody has been arrested, due process will be followed. 

“In this instance, the evidence shows that due process was not followed. Therefore, the members were arrested, and if there was a murder, we will oppose bail until the matter is fully investigated, given the position that they have,” Bell said.

“Also important to mention is that no case is the same as the other; we determine each case based on the evidence that we have before us. So it would be unfair to draw parallels between different cases.

“Some of the community members will be up in arms because it’s young people that have been arrested, but they’ve also been entrusted by SAPS, by the community, to do their work and to do it diligently, and that SAPS suspects must not be abused,” Bell said.

“So if anybody is arrested, then they must know that they will be safe in the custody of SAPS.

“Given the evidence and the evidence that has been presented to me by my office, I support, at this stage, us opposing bail because we’ve got to consider the interest of the investigation that will unfold, as well as the interest of the community, and as this is a very serious offence.

Provincial Commissioner Patekile said: “You understand that an alleged crime is an alleged crime.

“Now, our support between an employee and employer relationship is not in a public space, but what we do assist with is the legal representation, but that is a process that a person applies for, and then we consider that.

“We do not want to comment on what is subject to sub judice,” Patekile said, before adding, “Of course, I’m not happy that our members are arrested.

“I would have loved for them to go to court like any other person, but we’ll leave that (the matter) to the courts. We’ll leave that for investigation with IPID so that we don’t seem to be interfering with whatever; we let the law take its course,” he said.

Asked if they are going to replace the spots which are now left vacant due to the case against the AGU members, he said: “You must remember that those people attain a lot of experience by working in that environment, even if we are now (busy) with the new people who are going to (SAPS training) college in January. 

“We have ring-fenced 50 members who will go to AGU straight from deployment. We’re currently busy with those interviews, and some are going for medical assessments and all that.

“But we respect the courts, we respect what the IPID has to do, but we remain focused and with our members who are on duty to do the business of the day. We are giving the necessary support in terms of other EHW (Employee Health & Wellness) issues that must be dealt with in that space,” he said.

theolin.tembo@inl.co.za

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