3 years ago
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ARTICLE AD BOX
- A woman has been left traumatised after she was assaulted by a pensioner following a fender bender in Gauteng.
- Nozozo Ezile says at first the police didn't want to open a case but changed their mind after the EFF intervened.
- The authorities have arrested a 74-year-old man in connection with the attack.
A Gauteng woman is in shock after she was attacked by a pensioner following a fender bender in Beerster Street, Carletonville.
Nozozo Ezile, 32, said she felt embarrassed after a video of a white man verbally abusing and assaulting her in front of scores of people went viral on social media. The incident happened mere moments after she confronted him following the collision.
Ezile said what made matters worse was that officers at Carletonville police station initially refused to open a case. She said they turned her away after one officer told her the matter was a "civil case" and that they couldn't help her.
"That man punched me in the face and my lower body after I confronted him for wanting to just drive off when he drove into my car, when I was driving home from school. He then got out of the car to look at the damages and just said 'f**' before getting back into his car saying he will pay."
According to Ezile, the man didn't ask for her details and didn't take down her vehicle's registration number so he wouldn't have been able to contact her.
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The distraught mom of three said as the man was about to drive off, she pulled his car key out of the ignition. According to her, this angered the man, and he then assaulted her.
The video of the incident has garnered thousands of views and clearly shows the elderly man pulling Ezile's braids while telling her "I will fix your car", while bystanders continue to film.
Ezile said she called the police, but they only arrived two hours later. According to her, the man said they should go to the police station, which he never did.
Ezile added:
When the police arrived at the scene, they told us to follow them to the police station, where I opened an assault and damage to property case. What angered me more was that the police refused to open the case because they said the man didn't use anything to assault me, so they gave a piece of paper to go take to the Small Claims Court and let the man go.
She said was very upset as there was evidence that he had assaulted her in front of eyewitnesses.
Police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Mavela Masondo said a case of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm was opened at Carletonville police station.
"The 74-year-old suspect was arrested on [Friday] and taken to Carletonville Magistrate's Court, where he was released on bail. The suspect is expected to appear again on 16 March 2023," said Masondo.
Meanwhile, according to Ezile, the only reason why the police finally made an arrest a few days later was because EFF members saw the video, went to her school to fetch her and took her back to the police station.
She added:
They [EFF] came to my school looking for me to find out if a case was opened and then went back to the police because we wanted to understand why the suspect wasn't arrested.
Ezile said the experience left her traumatised and she feared the suspect would return to hurt her.
"I'm so hurt and embarrassed that this video is on social media because my kids have now seen it and keep asking me questions about the incident. I just need the justice system to pull through for me because this man has traumatised me," she added.
She said the man must be held accountable for his actions because he couldn't just assault women and think it was okay.
English (US)