The Gauteng High Court in Pretoria has held the Minister of Police liable after a woman’s Volkswagen Golf was stripped of its engine while it was kept by the police.
Acting Judge Jacques Minnaar found that the South African Police Service failed to protect Suzette Ropafadzo Paradza’s 2014 Golf. The car was stored as an exhibit at the SAPS 13 storage facility in Pretoria West, IOL reported.
“The defendant clearly failed in its duty of care in safekeeping the vehicle pending the release to the plaintiff,” the judgment said.
The court also ruled that an indemnity form Paradza signed when she collected the car could not be used against her. The form said she got the car in good condition and that the police could not be held responsible for losses.
“It would be unfair and unjust to hold the plaintiff bound to the indemnity,” the judgment said.
Paradza’s husband, Selestian Osiele, bought the car in 2019 or 2020 and gave it to her as a gift. Police took it in May 2022 after Osiele lent it to a friend who allegedly made up a hijacking story.
Warrant Officer Warren Timothy Bishop, the investigating officer, told the court he found the car in Laudium on 24 May 2022. He said it was in working condition and had an engine, but no battery.
A security officer at the storage facility, Mogadi Mashap Mashala, also confirmed the car was booked in with its engine.
When Paradza and Osiele came to fetch the car in September 2022, they struggled to find it and could not get its keys. They had it towed to a mechanic in Pretoria West.
According to Osiele, the mechanic found that the bonnet was tied shut with wire and the engine was gone. Osiele reported this to Bishop and took the car back to the police facility.
Albert Chibuike, a witness for Paradza, checked the car about three years after police first booked it in. He found the engine missing, along with the gearbox, water pump, flywheel, alternator, starter and manifold.
He said the bumper had been pulled off and the cooler, regulator fan and catalytic converter were missing. Chibuike said removing all the parts would take one to two days.
The judge did not accept his testimony as expert evidence. The court did accept his 29 years of experience and his evidence on how long the work would take.
Warrant Officer Kenneth Benjamin Brauns said the car was booked back into the system on 5 September 2022 without an engine or gearbox. He admitted he could not say exactly when it was physically returned.
The judge found the evidence showed the car came back on 1 September 2022. The delay in recording it could explain the different dates, the court found.
The judge criticised staff at the storage facility, describing their approach to helping the public as lax. The officer who completed the release forms had not physically checked the car before issuing the exit permit.
Warrant Officer Ronald Malesela Mashiachidi, who filled in the release forms, said he explained the documents to Paradza before she signed them.
The judge accepted that the indemnity was clearly written and that Paradza was not forced to sign it. But the court found she was not on an equal footing with the officials releasing her car.
The judge relied on the Constitutional Court’s ruling in Barkhuizen v Napier to decide whether enforcing the form would be fair and in line with public policy.
The court ordered the minister to pay Paradza’s proven damages and the costs of the case. The amount will be decided in separate proceedings, after the court postponed the assessment of damages indefinitely.
Source: this article is based on reporting by IOL. Image: IOL. Written with the help of AI and published by the Tzaneen Voice News desk. See our Editorial Standards.
Kgomotso Maake covers news and politics for Tzaneen Voice. Kgomotso reports on government, Parliament, municipalities, courts, crime and service delivery across South Africa, with a close eye on how national decisions reach towns like Tzaneen and the wider Limpopo province. Stories are written in plain English and focus on the facts: who made the decision, what it means, and what happens next.