“Treated unfairly”

An elderly couple from Bongweni in Khayelitsha, say they are still reeling with shock after allegedly being treated in an inhumane way by a Sea Point based investigative squad, twice in one day.

The couple, Zilindile Maliti(70) and his wife, Nokhaya Maliti(60), claimed they were treated like criminals by the police in their own house.

They allege that the police arrived at the house around noon last Wednesday, and forced their way into his yard.

City Vision is in possession of the number plates of the police vehicles involved in the ‘raid’ at the Maliti household.

He was “ordered to lie on the floor.”

Maliti said the officers told him they were looking for his son in connection with a murder that took place in Sea Point.

“They told me to lie down on my stomach, when one of them stepped on my neck while I was down,” he said.

Maliti says he begged the officers for mercy, but showed none.

He adds that the police then showed him a photo of a person he did not know, but whom the police claimed was his son.

Maliti says, however, that the picture did not match his son’s face.

“The name was correct, but the photo was wrong,” he says.

Maliti claims that his son moved out of the house a while ago.

“Despite giving them assurances that my son was not home, the police officers went ahead and searched the house.”

Maliti says even his tenant was threatened.

They police then left the house after a futile search, Maliti says.

Then, the nightmare played itself over again, when they arrived in the evening.

This time, his wife Nokhaya-who runs a tuck shop at Zola Business School- was also home.

Nokhaya: “The officers said they were looking for our son ... My phone rang, they confiscated it.

“They never showed us any documents, and had no name tags although they were dressed in full police uniform.”

“I was bundled into a police vehicle for no reason.”

Nokhaya alleges that neighbours who came out to witness the incident were also threatened, pepper-sprayed and prevented from taking pictures or making videos of the incident.

Despite the threats, however, the neighbours managed to take the number plates of the police vehicles.

“They even harassed my 11 year-old grandchild,” Nokhaya added.

Nokhaya claims the officers drove with her to the Thembokwezi Centre, where she was ordered to get out of the vehicle.

She refused, she says and asked to be taken to the police station, instead, she was returned her home and handed over the money minus her four cellphones.

Nokhaya says even as they reported the matter to the Khayelitsha Police Station, they were advised to open a case in Sea Point. Even their son, when he was informed of their ordeal, advised them to get a lawyer in order to deal with the matter. Neighbour Bukelwa Maziko said she came out when she heard the noise to see what was happening.

“When we got closer, they chased us away and even used pepper spray,” she says.

They pointed guns at us, although we showed them we are not a threat.

The family had not referred the matter to the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID)

Police spokesperson Brigadier Novela Potelwa told City Vision she was looking into the matter. However, at the time of going to print, she had not responded.