Court awards damages to Newcastle man after police shooting incident

The Pietermaritzburg High Court has ordered the Minister of Police to pay R650,000 in damages to Jabulani Mlabe, a 74-year-old man from Blaawubosch in Newcastle.

The claim stems from a shooting incident on March 12, 2008, where Mlabe was shot on his right leg during a shootout between police and suspects.

The High Court ruled that the police were negligent, finding that they failed to keep a proper lookout during the shooting.

At the time of the incident, Mlabe was 58 years old and working at Iscor, cycling home on the left side of the road.

Mlabe testified that he was shot on the right leg while cycling, causing him to fall. He was subsequently taken to the hospital in a police van. Crucially, Mlabe maintained that the bullet that struck him came from the police, not the suspects.

“There were three police vehicles. I was struck by a bullet fired by a policeman at the back of a police van, pointing in my direction,” he told the court.

He noted that the suspects’ vehicle was already about 20 metres past him when he was shot. While the suspects were also firing at the police, Mlabe was adamant that the shot that hit him originated from a South African Police Service (SAPS) member.

He disputed the police's defence that they were travelling in the same direction as him and that he was shot by suspects who had turned around their vehicle.

The police argued that they were acting in self-defence, having received reports of a hijacking involving armed and dangerous suspects.

Judge Pieter Bezuidenhout found Mlabe's testimony reliable, noting his consistent account of events.

Judge Bezuidenhout criticised the police, stating that they should have ensured it was safe to fire shots before doing so. He also highlighted contradictions in the evidence provided by retired police officer Captain Elvis Buthelezi.

“In my view, it has been proved on a balance of probabilities that the shot which struck Mlabe was fired by a member of the South African Police Service and further that it was due to the negligence of the police,” Judge Bezuidenhout concluded. 

nomonde.zondi@inl.co.za