/ 4 March 2013

Over 900 dead after being taken into police custody

KwaZulu-Natal lead with the number of people who died in police custody with 268 deaths
KwaZulu-Natal lead with the number of people who died in police custody with 268 deaths

The Dispatch Online reported on Monday that KwaZulu-Natal lead with the number of people who died in police custody with 268 deaths, Gauteng was second at 217 deaths and Eastern Cape had 120.

Meanwhile, eight police officers, implicated in the death of an East Rand taxi driver last week are expected to appear in the Daveyton Magistrate's Court on Monday.

The two warrant officers and six constables face a murder charge following the death of Mido Macia while in police custody.

The officers were filmed tying 27-year-old Macia to the back of a police van and dragging him along a street in Daveyton on Tuesday.

Macia, a taxi driver and Mozambican national, died at the local police station's cells several hours later. His body was found by a police officer on Tuesday night.

A post mortem revealed he died of head and internal injuries.

IPID spokesperson Moses Dlamini said police reported that they found Macia wrongfully parked on a road and ordered him to move. In a statement Dlamini said last week the officers claimed Macia assaulted a police officer and disarmed him.

Macia's death caused a public outcry against police brutality.

The Dispatch Online reported that the IPID was also investigating the death of a police officer who died in police custody at the Barkly East Police Station in January, a day after he was detained for allegedly being drunk. – Sapa