Category Archives: Fiona Gounden

Independent on Saturday: Colleagues hail top officer’s arrest

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http://www.independentonsaturday.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=5388745

Colleagues hail top officer’s arrest

March 13, 2010 Edition 1

Fiona Gounden

SOON after the arrest of Sydenham police station commander Senior Superintendent Glen Nayager, members of his station were “victorious” and said it “was about time” that he was made to answer for his “wrongdoings”.

His colleagues gathered outside the station soon after they heard the news that Nayager had been arrested by the Hawks, the Saps crime fighting unit, on Wednesday, for allegedly being in possession of dockets, including one in which he is facing a charge of assault.

He was arrested at police offices in Isipingo and appeared in the Pinetown Magistrate’s Court. He was released on R2 000 bail and the case was adjourned to April 16.

Hawks spokesman Musa Zondi said they were gathering information for the next court appearance on three counts of defeating and obstructing the course of justice. “We believe there was an intention on his part to hide those dockets, and in the process defeating and obstructing the course of justice.”

Minutes after his arrest, the mood at the station was jovial as officers gathered and laughed at the news of his arrests. Some even commented: “Glen Nayager, who’s that? We’ve never heard of him.”

A police captain said: “We are indeed glad that a high-profile team such as the Hawks have caught up with him, and there’s no buying them off.”

Meanwhile, the SAPS would institute internal disciplinary action against him, said Superintendent Vincent Mdunge.

The Star: Cops warn of more arrests after shops looted

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http://www.sundaytribune.co.za/?fSectionId=&fArticleId=vn20090725062037924C708152

Cops warn of more arrests after shops looted
25 July 2009, 15:52

By Fiona Gounden

The leader of hundreds of people responsible for looting shops in Durban this week should not think “she has got away with it”, warned police, saying they are still conducting intense investigations to charge the rest of the group.

However, the members of the South African Unemployed Peoples’ Movement (SAUPM), which is based in Durban, claim they are not “afraid of police”, and one person who was involved in the looting of shops has opened a case of assault against a police officer.

SAUPM leader Nozipho Mteshane yesterday warned that their “demonstrations are far from over”, and intense meetings were under way to “discuss their next plan of action in the city”.

The looters invaded supermarkets in Durban’s city centre on Wednesday, stealing and eating food from the stores.

About 100 members were arrested after branches of Shoprite and Pick n Pay were looted during a protest march in support of grants of R1 500 for the unemployed.

However, KwaZulu-Natal Premier Zweli Mkhize said such grants were unaffordable and distributing it to people would bankrupt the government.

Onlookers at the Shoprite store on Dr Pixley KaSeme (West) Street said members of the group ate chips, roasted chicken and other goods inside the store and loaded trolleys to take with them.

At the same time, another group raided the Pick n Pay store in the Workshop shopping centre.

A total of 90 of the arrested looters appeared in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on theft charges on Thursday. They were released on warning and told to appear in court again on August 28.

Yesterday, SAPS spokesperson Superintendent Vincent Mdunge said there were many more guilty parties out there besides the ones already arrested.

“Our investigations are still under way and we will be finding many other offenders who will be identified by questioning witnesses as well as by CCTV footage.”

* This article was originally published on page 5 of The Star on July 25, 2009