A man was arrested in Phoenix on Wednesday morning for holding his own child hostage, KwaZulu-Natal police said.
Superintendent Muzi Mngomezulu said police had accompanied the mother to serve a court interdict for the custody of the five-year-old child.
When they arrived at his house, the man held the child hostage, threatening to slit the boy’s throat with a knife and to kill himself should anyone try to take the child away.
After an hour of negotiations with the man, the child was released and handed to his mother. The man was then arrested.
He was charged with defeating the ends of justice by obstructing the police from performing their duty according to the Domestic Violence Act, insulting police and other charges, said Mngomezulu.
An arrangement to counsel the child has been made, he said.
The man will appear in court on Thursday. — Sapa