A Mpumalanga man, Sabelo Army Ndhamini, has been awarded R850 000 by the Mpumalanga High Court for being wrongfully arrested and detained by police in 2019.
The high court found that the police who arrested Ndhamini acted without proper evidence, keeping him in harsh conditions for nine months.
Ndhamini told the court that during his nine-month incarceration in police cells and prison, he faced harsh conditions before charges were dropped due to insufficient evidence.
His nightmare began in January 2019 when security officers arrested him and handed him over to the Hazyview police station.
There, he was formally arrested by Sergeant Sindi Mkhabela, who failed to verify key facts as required by law, making the arrest illegal.
Ndhamini described being confined in a cramped, dirty cell with 15 other inmates who assaulted him for not having cigarettes to offer.
He spent six months at the police station and three months at Nelspruit Prison, enduring what he called unbearable conditions.
Legal costs
The charges, linked to an alleged burglary, were withdrawn in October 2019, leaving Ndhamini to rebuild his life after months of wrongful detention.
The court ordered the minister of police to cover Ndhamini’s legal costs.
The court awarded Ndhamini R100 000 for the unlawful arrest, R150 000 for his time in police cells before court, and R600 000 for his time in prison after court appearances.
Judge Kgama Shai slammed the police for relying on a citizen’s arrest without proper scrutiny, stating that Mkhabela’s actions lacked legal grounding.
A claim of malicious prosecution against the national director of public prosecutions was dismissed, as the prosecutor acted on available evidence without malice.
For Ndhamini, the R850 000 award is not just compensation but a step toward justice after a traumatic injustice.
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