Father and son arrested for brutal assault of an employee

Groblersdal

The Police in Groblersdal have arrested two suspects, a security company owner, Piet Groenewald (63) and his son, Stephan Groenewald (27), in connection with assault with intent to do Grievous Bodily Harm.

According to the police, the duo was arrested on Thursday 18 January 2024 in Groblersdal Town after allegedly assaulting an employee who is a security guard in their company.

The pair appeared before the Groblersdal Magistrate’s Court on Friday 19 January 2024 and they were remanded in custody for bail application.

Colonel Malesela Ledwaba, Limpopo Provincial Police Spokesperson, said police preliminary investigation revealed that the 30-year-old victim was performing his guard duties at a network tower battery on Wednesday morning, 17 January 2024, at Kwaggafontein in Mpumalanga Province, when his supervisor paid an oversight visit.

“He then accused the victim of being intoxicated while on duty and as a result, he drove with him to Groblersdal in Limpopo Province to discuss the matter with the manager. Upon arrival, the two got into an argument that resulted in the manager hitting the victim with a hard object,” he said.

Ledwaba said the manager, Piet Groenewald, allegedly instructed his son to unleash their dog on the victim, resulting in him being bitten on both legs.

“The victim reported the incident to the police, and a case of assault GBH was opened. The two suspects were traced and arrested the following day and appeared in Groblersdal Magistrate’s Court,” he said.

Ali Maloba, Economic Freedom Fighters Chairperson in Sekhukhune Region, said the duo was arrested following the party’s intervention in the inhuman incident.

“We immediately prioritized the case and our first duty, we ensured that the victim received medical attention the same night of the incident. We then visited him at Groblersdal Hospital and later accompanied him to open a case at Groblersdal SAPS,” he said.

Maloba indicated that this is not the first time an employee in the company had been assaulted by the same manager who always gets away with it, allegedly because he has senior police officials on his payroll.

“At first, the police officer was reluctant in opening the docket and he even consulted with his senior colonel for authority. The case was opened two hours later and by that time, Groenewald and his son had already arrived at the police station. Surprisingly they were allowed to leave and only arrested after we forced the police to do so,” he said.

According to Maloba, there security employees who were physically abused by the same manager and they were turned away by the police when going to open cases.

“As the EFF in Sekhukhune, we are very much disappointed with the Police in Groblersdal. We believe that this could be a different story if it was a black owned company that ill-treats the worker,” he said.

Maloba said the party will monitor the court proceedings of the case and make sure that justice is served.