City of Cape Town Probe Clears Officers of Responsibility in Taxi Driver’s Death

The City of Cape Town says a probe has found no evidence linking Law Enforcement officers to the death of taxi driver Luvuyo Vimba in November last year.

An investigation by the City of Cape Town has found no evidence linking its Law Enforcement officers to the death of taxi driver Luvuyo Vimba last November.

Vimba died after a clash with SAPS railway officers on 1 November. Robbie Raburabu, spokesperson for the Independent Police Investigating Directorate (IPID) which is investigating the matter, told GroundUp at the time that on 1 November Cape Town Railway SAPS members “had an altercation” with Vimba. One “allegedly assaulted Vimba with a sjambok”; Vimba punched the officer and then ran away, to be chased and caught by SAPS members and City of Cape Town Law Enforcement officers backing up police, he said.

Raburabu said Vimba was then taken to the Railway Police station in a City Law Enforcement van.

An ambulance was called and he was taken to Groote Schuur Hospital where he died the next day, of “blunt force trauma”.

On Thursday the City told GroundUp that its own Investigative Unit had “found no evidence of wrongdoing on the part of any City employee.”

“This finding corresponded with video footage of the incident which showed that our officers provided tactical cover as SAPS officers pursued an individual and did not indicate any excessive or unlawful use of force by City officials,” said the City of Cape Town.

IPID meanwhile is investigating the role of SAPS officers in the incident. The City said it was cooperating closely with IPID, “as we are committed to seeing that justice is upheld”.

IPID spokesperson Phaladi Shuping told GroundUp the investigation into SAPS’s role in the incident is almost complete.

Shuping said a docket would soon be handed to the Director of Public Prosecutions for a decision.

“We cannot reveal anything relating to the investigation before the case has been decided on by the prosecutors,” said Shuping.

Vimba’s father, Sivokovoko Vimba, told GroundUp the family had been told this week that the investigating officer had been changed. “It has been almost a year since the incident and the investigation seems incomplete and that does not sit well with us. All we want is justice for Luvuyo and the perpetrators to face the law for their actions,” said Vimba.

CODETA spokesperson Nceba Enge said: “We are sorry for what happened to the family and we want those responsible for his death to be called to account.”

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