eNCA | Father throws toddler off shack roof during tense evictions in PE
PORT ELIZABETH – Law enforcement officers rescued a one-year-old child after her father threw her from the roof of a shack in Joe Slovo township in Kwadesi, Port Elizabeth (PE) on Thursday.
Police spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge said the incident occurred during a demolition conducted by the Nelson Mandela Municipality.
Members of the South African Police Service and metro police were deployed to ensure the safety of the team doing the demolition.
“At about 10.40am, a 38-year-old man climbed onto the roof of one of the structures and held his one-year-old girl in his hands. He did this to force the team not to demolish the structure.
“Due to the dangerous threat to the safety of the child, police set out a plan to rescue the girl and to arrest the male,” said Beetge.
Just before midday, police surrounded the shack and tried to persuade the father to come down from the roof, Beetge said.
Within minutes a rescue attempt ensued and police grabbed the father as he simultaneously flung his daughter off the roof.
Beetge said a metro police member managed to catch the girl as she was being flung.
“The father will be charged with attempted murder of his daughter. The case will be investigated by the Motherwell Cluster Family Violence, Child Protection, and Sexual Offences (FCS) unit.”
Beetge said the girl would be handed back to her mother, while social services would provide oversight.
By 1pm the operation was finalised after a total of about 90 structures were demolished.
Beetge said other incidents occurred during the course of the demolition.
A group of about 150 residents attempted to block Uitenhage Road by burning tyres and rubble, he said.
Police deployed along this route ensured that the road was reopened and was made safe for traffic.
The Motherwell cluster commander, Major General Dawie Rabie, applauded police members for the safe rescue of the child.
“It is shocking that a father would attempt to sacrifice his own child for the sake of delaying the demolishing of an illegal shack structure. He will be facing the full result of the Law against his actions,” he said.
African News Agency