Pretoria - Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa has welcomed the decision of the Constitutional Court, which dismissed Frederick Barend van Der Vywer’s claim against the state.
Van der Vywer had been charged with the murder of a young woman, Inge Lotz, in 2005 but was acquitted. He decided to claim damages to the tune of R30 million against the Minister of Police.
The Constitutional Court considered the application for leave to appeal and concluded that the application should be dismissed, as it bore no prospects of success.
The effect of the order is that SAPS is not liable for any damages suffered as a result of Van der Vyver’s arrest and prosecution.
The Constitutional Court’s judgement, the ministry said once again, vindicated the SAPS, as did the High Court, which had previously dismissed the appeal.
“I have publicly emphasized that whilst police arrest suspects daily, going forward their success should be measured according to the number of successful convictions they attain.
“The harsher sentences imposed upon criminals must be influenced by the kind of detective work conducted by police. To achieve this, focused attention is now around the SAPS human resource development; from recruitment to retirement,” Mthethwa said. - SAnews.gov.za
