SA Cops blamed for Nigerian man’s death

33-year-old Chinedu, who was originally from Isaila Mbano in Nigeria's Imo State, died on the morning of January 23, apparently after a confrontation with the police in South Africa.

Police said he died after swallowing drugs but friends and witnesses have a different account of what happened.

He died in a marked police car in front of the Arwyp Medical Centre in Kempton Park, South Africa.


The Kempton Park Nigerian community vehemently rejected the police’s version of what happened, and instead labelled it as “police brutality”, while demonstrating outside the hospital shortly after his death.

Rubber bullets had to be fired to disperse the protesters, who alleged that the police had placed a plastic bag over Chinedu’s head and suffocated him.
The Sunday Independent has been reliably informed that the post-mortem had not found any evidence that
Chinedu had been assaulted.

Further tests are under way to determine if Chinedu trully swallowed drugs. This has also delayed his burial rights and his corpse being sent to Nigeria.

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) spokesman Robbie Raburabu would not give any details of the results of the post-mortem.

“The results will be made public at the completion of our investigation. “Please just be patient," he said.

The Nigerian Union South Africa (Nusa) has agreed to work with the directorate. The union has promised to help it find witnesses who claim they saw the police suffocate Chinedu.
Raburabu confirmed that they had held a meeting with Nusa.

Nusa said it would approach the Nigerian consulate for assistance.
Chinedu’s cousin, Noble Ohamweh, said talks with the family regarding the repatriation would take place once post-mortem results had been issued to them.

“It is a tricky situation for us. We don’t know where to start. We haven’t met as a family to discuss funeral arrangements.
“We have been speaking to his wife back at home in Nigeria to keep her updated,” he said.
Ohanweh, who runs a cellphone shop on West Street, said his cousin’s death had been brutal. He alleged that the police were corrupt and had demanded money to release Chinedu.

“All they wanted was money. They said R500 was too little. When I arrived at the police car, I offered them R1 000, but they refused. They drove away with him.
“I was later called by residents, saying he had died inside a police vehicle at the filling station,” Ohanweh said.
Asked whether Chinedu took drugs, Ohamweh said he knew his cousin smoked dagga.

“He smoked dagga and not the big stuff,” he added.
Chinedu came to South Africa about seven months ago to start a business. While in the country, he owned a cellphone shop, also on West Street.
According to Ohamweh, Chinedu also owned a transport business at home  in the south-east of Nigeria.