Pertunia Ratsatsi
THE uncle of the three-year-old boy who was killed by police on Saturday has been charged with murder.
The case against the boy's father, Vusi Mchunu, has been provisionally withdrawn.
The boy's uncle, Peter Monaisa, was yesterday remanded when he appeared in the Wynberg magistrate's court. He is expected to appear in court again on November 19 for a bail application.
Mchunu and Monaisa were arrested by Constable SS Malaka, who shot Atlegang Phalane outside his father's home in Klipfontein View Extension 2, Midrand.
Atlegang was in a car with his uncle, who Malaka and fellow officers believed was a murder suspect they had trying to track down.
Malaka has claimed he saw Atlegang holding a pipe and mistook it for a gun. He opened fire and Atlegang was hit in the chest and died .
Malaka has since been arrested over the death and is expected to appear in the Thembisa magistrate's court on November 18 for a bail application.
Gauteng police spokesperson Superintendent Eugene Opperman said Monaisa was a suspect in a murder case that Malaka was investigating at the time of the shooting at the weekend.
Senior researcher at the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation David Bruce said: "This incident is not a random event but reflects an overall breakdown of control over the use of lethal force within the SAPS.
"It is reasonable to believe that this breakdown is due to a climate of confusion which has been created by statements … by senior politicians and police leaders."
Atlegang will be buried in Hammanskraal on Saturday.
CSVR is a multi-disciplinary institute that seeks to understand and prevent violence, heal its effects and build sustainable peace at the community, national and regional levels.
