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"contents": "<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Assault with the intent to do grievous bodily harm, malicious damage to property and the illegal pointing of a firearm are the charges being brought against eight VIP police officers who were allegedly involved in a brutal assault on motorists on the N1 in Gauteng earlier in July. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Robbie Raburabu, spokesperson for the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid), set out these charges and said the eight will be in court on Monday 24 July 2023.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ipid started its </span><a href=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-07-04-ipid-to-probe-vicious-assault-on-motorists-by-paul-mashatiles-security-unit-as-rage-ignites-across-sa/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">investigation</span></a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> on 4 July. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Raburabu added that the victims of the assault were traced to the South African National Defence Force headquarters in Thaba Tshwane where they are trainers. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“The suspects will hand themselves over tonight at the police station where they will be processed in preparation for their appearance at the Randburg Magistrate's Court tomorrow,” Raburabu said.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The eight police officers have been </span><a href=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-07-11-eight-vip-protection-officers-suspended-after-gauteng-highway-assault/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">suspended</span></a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in terms of SAPS disciplinary regulations since Monday, 10 July, SAPS national spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said previously.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The officers are members of the SAPS Protection and Security Services programme attached to the protection detail of Deputy President Paul Mashatile.</span>\r\n\r\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1757124\" src=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Untitled-1-8.jpg\" alt=\"vip protection\" width=\"720\" height=\"360\" /> <em>iStock | Deputy President Paul Mashatile. (Photo: Gallo Images / Beeld / Deaan Vivier)</em></p>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They were caught on video by a motorist who filmed the attack on three people on the N1 highway between Johannesburg and Pretoria. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The video, which grabbed the public’s attention on social media, shows how the police officers, driving a black BMW, stopped on the N1, dragged a man to the edge of the road and began punching and kicking him. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The video also shows another man who appears to be lying unconscious on the side of the road.</span>\r\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\r\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Make these thugs famous! Allegedly cops of VIP protection unit. This is an atrocity. This is what happens when the police is used as an iron fist for the state. Apparently in Johannesburg today. What will happen to them <a href=\"https://twitter.com/SAPoliceService?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@SAPoliceService</a>? Whatever happened to serve and protect?! <a href=\"https://t.co/mkImtSNpmw\">pic.twitter.com/mkImtSNpmw</a></p>\r\n— Ian Cameron (@IanCameron23) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/IanCameron23/status/1675922364356509696?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 3, 2023</a></blockquote>\r\n<script async src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shortly after the incident, Mashatile’s office confirmed that the suspect belonged to his protection unit but said he was not in the vehicle. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After the incident, there were </span><a href=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-07-05-calls-to-rein-in-vip-convoys-mount-as-charges-filed-against-mashatiles-protection-unit/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">several calls </span></a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">for the VIP Protection Units to be reined in. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The officers will be named once they have appeared in court. </span><b>DM</b>\r\n\r\n<em>This article was updated to include an image of some of the suspects handing themselves in on Sunday night ahead of their court appearance on Monday. </em>",
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"description": "<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Assault with the intent to do grievous bodily harm, malicious damage to property and the illegal pointing of a firearm are the charges being brought against eight VIP police officers who were allegedly involved in a brutal assault on motorists on the N1 in Gauteng earlier in July. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Robbie Raburabu, spokesperson for the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid), set out these charges and said the eight will be in court on Monday 24 July 2023.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ipid started its </span><a href=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-07-04-ipid-to-probe-vicious-assault-on-motorists-by-paul-mashatiles-security-unit-as-rage-ignites-across-sa/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">investigation</span></a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> on 4 July. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Raburabu added that the victims of the assault were traced to the South African National Defence Force headquarters in Thaba Tshwane where they are trainers. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“The suspects will hand themselves over tonight at the police station where they will be processed in preparation for their appearance at the Randburg Magistrate's Court tomorrow,” Raburabu said.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The eight police officers have been </span><a href=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-07-11-eight-vip-protection-officers-suspended-after-gauteng-highway-assault/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">suspended</span></a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in terms of SAPS disciplinary regulations since Monday, 10 July, SAPS national spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said previously.</span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The officers are members of the SAPS Protection and Security Services programme attached to the protection detail of Deputy President Paul Mashatile.</span>\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_1757124\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"720\"]<img class=\"size-full wp-image-1757124\" src=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Untitled-1-8.jpg\" alt=\"vip protection\" width=\"720\" height=\"360\" /> <em>iStock | Deputy President Paul Mashatile. (Photo: Gallo Images / Beeld / Deaan Vivier)</em>[/caption]\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They were caught on video by a motorist who filmed the attack on three people on the N1 highway between Johannesburg and Pretoria. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The video, which grabbed the public’s attention on social media, shows how the police officers, driving a black BMW, stopped on the N1, dragged a man to the edge of the road and began punching and kicking him. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The video also shows another man who appears to be lying unconscious on the side of the road.</span>\r\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\r\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Make these thugs famous! Allegedly cops of VIP protection unit. This is an atrocity. This is what happens when the police is used as an iron fist for the state. Apparently in Johannesburg today. What will happen to them <a href=\"https://twitter.com/SAPoliceService?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@SAPoliceService</a>? Whatever happened to serve and protect?! <a href=\"https://t.co/mkImtSNpmw\">pic.twitter.com/mkImtSNpmw</a></p>\r\n— Ian Cameron (@IanCameron23) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/IanCameron23/status/1675922364356509696?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 3, 2023</a></blockquote>\r\n<script async src=\"https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shortly after the incident, Mashatile’s office confirmed that the suspect belonged to his protection unit but said he was not in the vehicle. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After the incident, there were </span><a href=\"https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-07-05-calls-to-rein-in-vip-convoys-mount-as-charges-filed-against-mashatiles-protection-unit/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">several calls </span></a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">for the VIP Protection Units to be reined in. </span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The officers will be named once they have appeared in court. </span><b>DM</b>\r\n\r\n<em>This article was updated to include an image of some of the suspects handing themselves in on Sunday night ahead of their court appearance on Monday. </em>",
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iStock | Deputy President Paul Mashatile. (Photo: Gallo Images / Beeld / Deaan Vivier)