Ugochukwu Emmanuel Nnoli’s family believes the assault played a factor in his death. Nnoli, who was attacked by police in November 2023 at his workplace during a raid, has died.
His relatives stated that since the incident, he has been complaining of stomach issues and headaches.
Police have kept the identities of the cops involved and the actions taken since the assault under wraps.
Ugochukwu Emmanuel Nnoli was assaulted by police officers on November 7, 2023, during a raid at his workplace. His family reported that he has been in discomfort since then. On February 4, he died in the hospital.
“Last month, things became awful for him. He couldn’t take the discomfort in his stomach, and he had a severe headache. Chukwuebuka ThankGod Igboeri, Nnoli’s heartbroken younger brother, told GroundUp that he went to Groote Schuur Hospital on January 24 and was admitted.
Igboeri claimed he visited his brother every day. He had appeared to be improving.
“I still don’t know why my brother died. At the hospital, I was just told that the causes were natural. I don’t know if an autopsy was performed.”
One of Nnoli’s buddies recorded the incident. The video shows Nnoli being searched, manhandled, forced to the ground, kicked, and abused by two of five armed SAPS officers at Perfect Touch Car Wash in Mowbray.
“After the incident, my brother did not go to the hospital, he only went to the pharmacy and got pain medication,” Igboeri said in a statement.
“He has two small children back home in Nigeria, and he has just been in South Africa for a year, and now he has left. “Now he will return home in a coffin.”
The family is currently working to raise funds to repatriate his body.
Nnoli spoke to GroundUp the day after being assaulted. He claimed the incident had left him traumatised. This was the second raid on the car wash. He hadn’t been beaten during the previous raid.
Nnoli’s incident occurred on the same day that barber Juma Igiranieza was assaulted inside the Perfect Touch Hair Salon, which also houses the car wash. Igiranieza’s assault was filmed on CCTV.
At a gathering of the South African National Editors Forum, weeks after the assault on Igiranieza, Minister of Police Bheki Cele stated, “I am told that IPID [the police watchdog] is working on this particular matter and many others and will make recommendations. “We will try to move quickly.”
However, Cele’s spokeswoman, Lirandzu Themba, has not responded to GroundUp’s further questions. We have also been unable to determine the names of the cops involved in the assaults.
The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) informed us last month that the probe into this case is still ongoing. The only issue for the detectives is identifying the suspected culprits, which we hope will be handled quickly.