The KwaZulu-Natal High Court has found the South African Police Service (SAPS) liable for injuries suffered by a cyclist who was shot during a police pursuit in Madadeni, Newcastle, more than a decade ago. In a judgment delivered by Judge Piet Bezuidenhout this week, the court ruled that police officers acted negligently when they fired shots during a vehicle chase, striking an innocent bystander. Jabulani David Mlabe (74), was cycling home from work on March 12, 2008, when he was shot in the right thigh.
At the time, he was 58 years old and employed at Iscor in Newcastle, earning about R7 000 per month. He later testified that the injury left him unable to continue working. Mlabe told the court he was riding on the left side of the road in the Blaawubosch area when police vehicles approached from the opposite direction while pursuing suspects in a white Toyota Corolla.
He said the suspects’ vehicle had already passed him when a police officer fired a shot that struck his leg. The bullet entered the inside of his right thigh and exited at the back, narrowly missing the bone. He was hospitalised for three days.
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The minister of police opposed the claim, arguing that officers were placed in a dangerous situation while pursuing armed suspects and acted out of necessity and self-defence. The defence maintained that Mlabe may have been struck by a bullet fired by the suspects and not the police.
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