The Citizen reports that a KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) police officer has been arrested for the vicious assault of seven men alongside the N11 highway in Newcastle on 22 August this year.
Sergeant Sibusiso Xolani Kunene’s arrest on Monday followed an investigation into video footage of the assault that circulated on social media. Kunene, a detective stationed in Newcastle attached to the Amajuba district task team, was caught on camera brandishing a rifle while parading in front of the men lying face-down on the side of the road. The 46-year-old officer appears to converse with one of the men before brutally kicking him in the face. Kunene is then seen kicking a second and a third man in the presence of several other men dressed in police uniforms. Two victims allegedly lost some teeth, and others sustained bruises. Kunene appeared in court on Tuesday to face five counts of assault. He was released on R1,000 bail and the case was postponed to 22 September for further investigation. There is a possibility of more arrests being effected and more charges being added as investigations continue. The Newcastle incident took place about a month after the alleged assault on 3 July by Deputy President Paul Mashatile’s protection unit of a motorist and two of his passengers on the N1 highway near Fourways in Johannesburg
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Cornelia Le Roux at The Citizen
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