A RUGBY player contracted to play for one of South Africa’s top professional teams was arrested yesterday after a policeman was allegedly beaten to death in the early hours of the morning.
Blue Bulls prop forward Bees Roux (28), who joined the championship-winning club at the start of last season, was taken into custody at Sunnyside police station after the metro police officer died.
The officer was found critically injured in the middle of Schoeman Street in Hatfield, a wealthy Pretoria suburb, but died moments after the emergency services arrived.
Police spokesman Eugene Opperman told reporters that on- duty police officers pulled over a vehicle in the administrative capital early yesterday morning.
“In the altercation that followed a policeman was severely beaten and has died,” Mr Opperman said.
A police spokeswoman, Capt Katlego Mogale, identified the dead policeman as Ntshimane Johannes Mogale (38).
He was married with children and had been with the metro police for four years.
The police confirmed they had opened a murder case, but they would not immediately say whether the Blue Bulls player would be charged with assaulting the officer.
Lawyers for Roux initially tried to secure a court appearance for their client yesterday so he could apply for bail.
“We are trying to arrange for him to appear in court. He is still in custody,” said the rugby player’s attorney Ernst Serfontein.
When Mr Serfontein was asked by reporters why his client had been arrested, he said: “I believe there was an incident where a policeman died, passed away, and I know [he] was involved in the incident. How he was involved I don’t know yet, I can’t tell you.”
However, later in the day it was confirmed the rugby player would spend the weekend in custody, as is often the case with individuals arrested on a Friday, and would appear in a Pretoria court on Monday.
The Blue Bulls club, which plays its home games at Loftus Road rugby stadium in Pretoria, released a statement acknowledging one of their players had allegedly been involved in an incident linked to the death of a police officer.
“It has come to the Blue Bulls’ attention that Bees Roux has allegedly been involved in an incident involving a metro policeman last night in Pretoria.
“We do not have any factual information at this stage, but have been informed that the policeman passed away. We would like to express our sincerest condolences to the relatives of the deceased. We are not in a position to make any further comments in this regard,” the club statement read.
The Blue Bulls played the Pumas at Nelspruit’s Mbombela stadium last night, but Roux had not been included in the squad, which was announced before the incident took place.