A tense stand-off between taxi drivers and law enforcement led to road closures in Cape Town and a hostage situation on Tuesday after a metro police officer was filmed chokeholding a taxi driver who was resisting arrest on the N2 near Langa earlier that day.
The taxi driver passed out after the chokehold sparking speculation that he had died.
The altercation quickly escalated as misinformation spread, with some taxi drivers believing their colleague had died during the arrest.
In response, angry taxi operators at the Cape Town station deck confronted law enforcement officers, leading to the hostage situation.
Three video clips circulated on social media, capturing the dramatic arrest.
In one of the recordings, a woman can be heard crying out that the man was dead, adding to the confusion and panic among taxi operators.
According to Makhosandile Tumana, spokesperson for the Cape Organisation for the Democratic Taxi Association (Codeta), drivers reacted out of anger after receiving false information.
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“There were rumours that one of the drivers had been killed by traffic officers. They didn’t know he had collapsed after being suffocated. They thought he was dead, and that’s why they retaliated. We sent a working committee to the station deck to clarify that he had been arrested, not killed.”
Tumana also expressed concern over what he described as excessive force used by metro police.
Mayco Member for Safety and Security, JP Smith, defended the actions of the metro police, stating that officers were forced to restrain the suspect, who resisted arrest.
“On Tuesday just before 7 am, our traffic officers apprehended a taxi driver who fled after being pulled over for driving on the shoulder of the road. We later discovered he had an outstanding warrant of nearly R3 000. His actions endangered passengers and other road users. The officers acted within the law, using necessary force to arrest him,” said Smith.
Smith confirmed that false information about the driver’s death led to the hostage situation.
“Social media misinformation created unnecessary tensions in the CBD, resulting in an illegal gathering, road closures, and two law enforcement officers being taken hostage. Fortunately, their colleagues intervened and freed them.”
He urged all involved to allow the legal process to unfold and warned against escalating violence.
Police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg confirmed that both the traffic officer and the arrested taxi driver were at the Athlone police station, where a case of reckless and negligent driving was registered.
Meanwhile, the South African Communist Party’s provincial secretary, Benson Ngqentsu, condemned the actions of the traffic officer.
“The shocking video of the traffic officer strangling a civilian is utterly unacceptable. Minibus taxi operators must obey the law, but we also cannot tolerate law enforcement officers using excessive force. This reminds me of the apartheid-era police brutality,” said Ngqentsu.
Authorities are continuing investigations into the incident as tensions between taxi operators and law enforcement persist.
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