A woman has told of her nightmare ordeal when her ex-boyfriend, an Ekurhuleni metro police officer, kidnapped and severely assaulted her after she rejected his attempts to get back together with her.
Constable Emmanuel Manuel — who was dismissed from the EMPD in January 2022 after a disciplinary hearing into the incident — was on Tuesday sentenced to five years in jail by the district court at Palm Ridge in Alberton, after kidnapping and assaulting Camillia Beyers in December 2020.
He was given four years’ imprisonment for abduction and five years for assault GBH. The sentences will run concurrently.
He was also declared unfit to possess a firearm. He has already served one year after he was arrested for breaking a protection order.
“He beat me with his fists, slapped me several times and kicked me all over my body — from my head to my female parts. He also fired two shots into the wall next to me,” Beyers, 26, said.
Beyers and Manuel dated for “six years and eight months” before their mutual break-up five months before the incident.
Then Beyers met someone new.
We drove around the block. His wheel balancing was better than his mental health. He had no hand on the wheel because he was punching me with both fists.
— Camillia Beyers
“Someone saw me with the other man and took a picture, which he showed to Manny,” Beyers said.
On a day off from work in computer sales, Beyers received a call from her manager to say Manuel had come to the business.
“They said Manny was crying. I unblocked him temporarily and phoned him to say he must respect my workplace and not go there. We had nothing to talk about,” Beyers said.
The next day Manuel returned.
“This time he brought a huge bunch of flowers, sweets and chocolates,” Beyers said.
He waited in the parking lot until she finished work at 5pm, offering to take her home. But she refused.
At home Beyers again called Manuel.
“I told him he can’t just come to my work. He begged me for an opportunity to talk. I decided to do that so we could finish this chapter,” Beyers said.
“I have known Manny for most of my life. We grew up together as family friends. My grandmother and his grandmother knew each other from the age of three.”
She tried to end things peacefully.
“We sat in his car for about two hours. Manny was crying. He said he couldn’t live without me. I just told him we both knew each other long enough to know the relationship was over.”
She agreed to remain friends.
“Manny told me he was going to show me he had changed.”
On the evening of December 5, he arrived at her house and asked her to join them at his family’s home.
She agreed and later that night he asked if they could get back together.
“He came to stand behind me and put his arms around me. He said he still loved me and asked me to move in with him so we could fix things.”
She shudders.
“When I said no, he totally flipped. I took my things and started walking to the gate. Manny ran around me and pushed me back to the cottage.
“He slapped me with an open hand twice across my face. In the blink of an eye, Manny turned into a monster.”
Family members tried to intervene to no avail.
“While we were struggling, his service pistol fell from his sweatpants. Manny picked it up, cocked it in front of my face and fired two shots into the wall behind me. Those shots missed me by about 45cm,” Beyers said.
He then started kicking her.
“I covered my face, but he kicked me everywhere he could reach. Then he dragged me by my hair back to the cottage.”
She said Manuel then took three knives from a kitchen drawer.
“He put two knives in his pockets and kept one in his hand. He said, ‘now you will show me where that other guy lives.’ I was filled with fear. He dragged me to his car and threw me inside.”
“We drove around the block. His wheel balancing was better than his mental health. He had no hand on the wheel because he was punching me with both fists.”
Suddenly a vehicle approached.
“I jumped out of the car and stumbled in front of the blue bakkie. The driver asked me what happened, and I begged him to take me to the police. Suddenly Manny was back. He was next to the driver with a knife in his hand. ‘Let that bitch climb out of the car,’ he demanded. The driver was scared and complied.”
Manuel dragged her back to his car.
“We were driving in the direction of Vereeniging. He was punching me in my face the entire time. At one stage he became even more angry because I was spilling blood in his car.
“He said he was going to kill me. I held my shirt in front of my face to stop the bleeding and said my last words in that car. I just said, ‘Lord help me.’ Then the Lord answered,” Beyers said.
“I saw a police van coming from the front. I pressed the hooter and the hazards switch and waved my hands through the sunroof.”
She tried to jump out.
“Manny grabbed me by the hair and pulled me back. I just kept watching the police van disappearing in the rearview mirror. Suddenly they stopped, turned around and switched on their blue lights.”
At a traffic light a good Samaritan saw what was happening.
“He skipped the robot and drove his bakkie across the road blocking us so the police could catch up.
“When Manny saw the bakkie had us blocked he shouted at me that I was playing with his job. The car was still moving when I jumped out.”
“When the police approached, Manny said, ‘Guys, we are colleagues.’ But they did not listen. He resisted arrest and was wrestled to the ground and cuffed.”
With the help of civil rights organisation Action Society, her case was opened and Beyers was granted a protection order.
“Manny was on the run for almost a week before handing himself over to police. On December 18, he was granted bail with strict conditions. He immediately drove to our house with friends and did a sort of dance in the street to show he was untouchable. Then they left.”
She said Manuel continued to harass and intimidate her until he was finally arrested last year for breaking the protection order.
The NPA did not immediately comment on the sentencing.
Tshepi Mmekwa, Gauteng Action Centre coordinator at Action Society, said he was not satisfied with the sentence.
“Even though we celebrate that one more abuser is in jail and away from his victim, we are very concerned with what will happen to Camillia after Manuel is released. Five years is a slap on the wrist,” said
“It is time the courts start giving much harsher sentences for violent abusers. Our court sentencing is not victim-centred, and it should be.”
Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) spokesperson Robbie Raburabu confirmed Manuel had been sentenced to five years after being convicted on March 23 of assault with intention to do grievous bodily harm, pointing of a firearm, discharge of a firearm and kidnapping.
“After he was arrested and released on bail, he violated his bail conditions and a protection order by hurling threats at the complainant. He was then rearrested and remained in prison until the case was concluded.”
He confirmed Manuel had been dismissed by the City of Ekurhuleni on January 14 2022 as a result of Ipid recommendations.
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