Motorist locked up drunk officer in back of his own police van

A motorist in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, arrested an allegedly drunk police officer and locked him up in the back of his police van after watching him drive recklessly through the city streets. Russell George, of Prestbury, said he was driving at about 8 pm on Sunday when he noticed a police van driving fast and recklessly .

“He was driving towards oncoming traffic. At this point I was concerned about the safety of other road users,” self-employed George said. “He suddenly jammed on his brakes and came to a complete stop. I got out of my car and went towards him and I asked him if he knew what he was doing. He started his car and carried on driving,” he said. Continuing to drive recklessly, the policeman again came to a stop.



George decided it would be best to call 10111. He was told the police would be there shortly. “After five minutes, no one had arrived. So I jumped out of my car and I approached the driver’s side and asked him to come out. He looked at me and I could smell that he had been drinking. I asked him again, and he refused. I then grabbed his keys, pulled him out and locked him in the back of his own van,” George said. He added that the police van was badly damaged, as if it had been involved in an accident.

Khanyi Mnikathi, a witness, also said the policeman was drunk when he was pulled out of the vehicle. She said: “He was quite sloshed. He was weak enough for him to be pulled out and into the back of the van.  When he was put into the back [of the van], he started crying.” She said the police officers who arrived there “were quite embarrassed”. “It was ironic because it was a citizen who put him in the back of his own van,” she said. Police spokesperson Joey Jeevan confirmed that the policeman had been taken into custody. “He will be charged with driving while under the influence of alcohol,” she said.