The Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD) welcomes this opportunity to engage with the media about its work. The mandate of the ICD is to ensure that deaths in police custody and deaths due to police action, as well as criminality and misconduct allegedly committed by members of the South African Police Service (SAPS) and Municipal Police Services (MPS) are investigated effectively and efficiently.
This means that the ICD is there to conduct independent and impartial investigations of alleged criminality and misconduct committed by police officers.
This case is but one of the investigations that the ICD deals with on a yearly basis. I called this media briefing to talk about the conclusion of the ICD’s investigation into the Sutherland shooting incident which occurred on Matjiesfontein Farm on 20 January 2011.
The background and details of the investigation are as follows:
On 21 January 2011 it was reported to the ICD Northern Cape provincial office (Kimberley) that a French couple who were being sought by the South African Police Services (SAPS) were apprehended and shot during an alleged exchange of gun fire with members of the SAPS at the “Matjiesfontein farm” in the Sutherland district.
The couple were earlier on reported to have allegedly shot dead a police official and wounded another during a police enquiry at their residence regarding alleged unlicensed firearms. The SAPS then assembled a task team consisting of numerous units to track and apprehend the suspected fugitives. An ICD team was dispatched to the scene to conduct a full investigation into the shooting incident on the same day and arrived in the Sutherland area at approximately 19h00 that evening.
A number of members of the SAPS were interviewed and the crime scene was assessed. The autopsy examinations on the deceased were conducted on 25 January 2011 in Kimberley by two pathologists. The post mortems were attended by the ICD, the SAPS Ballistic Unit from Cape Town, the French Consulate, Local Criminal Record Centre (LCRC) from Kimberley and members of the Northern Cape Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations (DPCI).
The findings of the pathologists were based on the observations and examination of the deceased bodies. The cause of death for both deceased was indicated as contact gun-shot wounds to the head with a high velocity firearm. The ballistics report was consistent with the rest of the investigation.
In summary, considering the contents of the SAPS members statements, the post mortem reports, the ballistics report and from observations made, it can be concluded that the deaths of the deceased persons cannot be attributed to the actions of the SAPS members and that the cause of death was self inflicted contact gun-shots to the heads (shot partner and then himself).
It is evident from the post mortem examination that the wounds inflicted from the SAPS fired shots were not the cause of death but were shot at persons that were already clinically dead.
On an entirely different matter, you may be aware that the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court denied the accused bail in the killing of Ms Jeanette Odendaal. We welcome the decision of the court.
We will take questions in regard to other matters that the ICD is investigating separately.
Thank you.
Enquiries:
Moses Dlamini
Cell: 082 809 1927
Media statement by the Executive Director of the ICD, Mr Francois Beukman, on the outcome of the ICDs investigation into the death of the French couple in Sutherland in January 2011
