South Africa Probes Death of Man Dragged Behind Van |
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VOA News
28 February 2013 (10:13AM)
South African police are investigating the death of a man in police custody who was dragged from the back of a police van.
Video of the incident shows 27-year-old Mido Macia, a taxi driver from Mozambique, being subdued by police and handcuffed to the van in front of a large crowd of onlookers. In the video, taken by a bystander, people urge the police to stop but the van drives forward.
Macia later died in police custody.
Media reports say Macia was stopped Tuesday by officers in an area east of Johannesburg after he was allegedly obstructing traffic. Police say he became aggressive when they asked him to move.
Moses Dlamini, a spokesman for the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) investigating the incident, says authorities are looking into the cause of Macia's death.
"The post mortem showed that he had head injuries and some injuries on his upper abdomen. That is what we are currently looking at."
Dlamini says that officers had not mentioned the dragging incident in their police report.
The video of Macia being dragged through the streets was released through a South African newspaper, the Daily Sun.
South Africa Probes Death of Man Dragged Behind Van
VOA News
28 February 2013 (12:57PM)
South African police are investigating the death of a man who was dragged through the streets from the back of a police van.
Video of the incident shows 27-year-old Mido Macia, a taxi driver from Mozambique, being taken into police custody and handcuffed to the van. In the video, taken by a bystander, people urge the police to stop but the van drives forward.
Macia later died in police custody.
South African President Jacob Zuma has condemned Macia's death, describing the video of the incident as "horrific, disturbing and unacceptable." Mr. Zuma said that "no human being should be treated in that manner."
Media reports say Macia was stopped Tuesday by officers in an area east of Johannesburg after he was allegedly obstructing traffic. Police say he became aggressive when they asked him to move.
Moses Dlamini, a spokesman for South Africa's Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID), says authorities are looking into the cause of Macia's death.
"The post mortem showed that he had head injuries and some injuries on his upper abdomen. That is what we are currently looking at."
Dlamini says that officers had not mentioned the dragging incident in their police report.
The video of Macia being dragged through the streets was released Thursday through a South African newspaper, the Daily Sun.