Graveyard robbery victim continues fight for justice

A man robbed at a graveyard in Cape Town is not letting his complaint against police die an easy death.

In March 2017‚ Dr Michael Pravetz and his brother Matthew were looking at a historical grave site in Maitland in Cape Town when they were mugged by a knife-wielding attacker‚ who made off with property including a camera.

Pravetz reported this to the police‚ who he claims have refused to investigate their case or even take their statements. When the Sunday Times first reported the matter‚ Western Cape police spokesman Captain FC van Wyk said three SAPS members at Kensington had been identified and had been ''departmentally charged in the Pravetz case''. However‚ Pravetz claims this has not happened.

"The SAPS is broken‚ from top to bottom. If these men and women would do their job and stop defending that which is indefensible‚ perhaps some light might be seen at the end of the tunnel‚'' said Pravetz who plans on continuing his fight for justice.

According to the Victims of Crime Survey released by Stats SA in February 2017‚ satisfaction with police nationally declined from around 64% in 2011 to 59% in 2016.

Lizette Lancaster‚ of the Institute for Security Studies‚ said the problem of statements not being taken lay in how the performance of police stations was measured.

“We have heard that on occasion‚ some stations don’t open dockets when requested.” she reported‚ adding that “personnel often think it reflects badly on them if crime [rates are] high”.

This week South African Police Service spokesman Sally De Beer did not respond to a request to comment on the issue.

• Namaste is on an SIT Study Abroad programme. He wrote this story in association with Round Earth Media