A taxi driver in South Africa died after being
handcuffed to a police vehicle and dragged hundreds of yards, it has
been alleged.
Independent police investigators are looking into the claims after
video footage emerged showing a man being dragged along a road behind a
police van.
The man, a 27-year-old from Mozambique, was later found dead in a police cell in Daveyton, Johannesburg, on Tuesday.
Officers have claimed they put the taxi driver in a police van in order
to take him to a police station on the East Rand, and cannot explain
how he later died.
But the video, obtained by South Africa's Daily Sun newspaper, shows
officers struggling to overpower a man - believed to be the taxi driver -
before attaching him to a point at the rear of their vehicle and then
driving off leaving him hanging outside.
Officers are seen restraining the man and handcuffing him to the van
Officers are seen restraining the man and handcuffing him to the van
At one point they attempt to carry his legs while the vehicle is moving
forward but have to drop him as the police van speeds up.
The footage then shows the man trying to stay on his feet as he is dragged behind the vehicle for several hundred metres.
The person filming the incident attempts to keep up with the truck
dragging the taxi driver, but has to give up as the vehicle is going too
fast.
South Africa's Independent Police Investigation Directorate (IPID) said
on Wednesday that officers had initially attempted to arrest the man
because he was allegedly obstructing traffic.
IPID spokesman Moses Dlamini said: "We are investigating an incident
involving the death of man, allegedly at the hands of the police. We are
shocked by the footage which has been released.
"The circumstances surrounding his death are still allegations ... let's find out what really happened," he said.
He said there were reports the man had tried to disarm a police officer before the attack. The taxi driver was then allegedly beaten once inside the police holding cells.
He is understood to have been found dead by another police officer later the same day.
Mr Dlamini told the South African website News 24 that an investigation
had begun before the man's death into allegations he carried out an
assault resulting in grievous bodily harm.
A post-mortem on the dead suspect indicated he had died from head injuries with internal bleeding.
Police in South Africa are known for heavy handedness when dealing with
the public, and the police watchdog is handling numerous cases of
police brutality.
The police department could not confirm if the officers had been suspended.
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