SHAIN GERMANER
FOOTBALL star Jabu Mahlangu (Pule) walked out of court a free man yesterday after charges against him and two others were dropped.
But he was angry with the police, who he claimed had treated him shoddily, and the cancellation of the charges gave the talented midfielder free rein to pursue legal action against those he said were responsible for his arrest.
Mahlangu, whose seSotho nickname translates to “Troublesome child”, was arrested on Friday night along with comedian Oscar “Madluputhu” Mgudlwa and two friends. Police said they were caught travelling in a stolen VW Jetta 5.
They said it had taken a high-speed chase to capture the group as they sped from the N12 highway in Benoni to the centre of Joburg.
The charges against three of the men, including Mgudlwa and Mahlangu, were dropped in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court. But the Jetta driver, Mxolisi Nkosi, was charged with possession of a stolen vehicle.
The car was stolen during a housebreaking in Springs last month and, according to Mgudlwa, Nkosi had only recently purchased it from a close friend. He had not known it was stolen.
Speaking to the media outside court yesterday afternoon, the comedian and footballer said their three nights in the Hillbrow police station had been terrible.
“It was a traumatic weekend for ourselves, our families and our careers,” said Mgudlwa.
Mahlangu told The Star the incident could harm his career and that reports of the group trying to evade the police had been “a total lie”.
“I’m a professional footballer preparing for the coming season, and (bad publicity) can affect these opportunities. Now a lot of South Africans think I’m a criminal. I’m not that kind of person,” said Mahlangu.
The celebrities said they were treated harshly on the night of their arrest and were forced by police in the cells to pose for pictures.
Mgudlwa said he was verbally abused and was manhandled at the prison when he refused to pose for pictures.
“But I won’t blame the police, they’re just doing their job,” he said afterwards.
Mahlangu was not quite as forgiving. He said he would be taking legal action. However, he was not willing to say if he would be targeting the media, which he said had misrepresented him, or the police who he claimed had harassed him.
“All I want is for the media to clarify what happened,” said Mgudlwa after his release.
The comedian said he and his three friends were travelling to the ANC’s election celebrations when they noticed the Netstar tracking helicopter circling the car.
The comedian said the group had no idea the helicopter was tracking them.
That was why they had not pulled over until they were confronted by police cars on the M1 bridge over Newtown.
They were confronted by heavily armed police officers, were searched and told that their vehicle had been stolen.
They were then told to drop to the ground, and were handcuffed and promptly taken to the Hillbrow police station.
“We were in stop-and-go traffic (while in the car). There was no place for us to try to escape,” said Mgudlwa.
This isn’t the first time Mahlangu has been on the wrong side of the law.
He faced allegations of the kidnapping and statutory rape of a|19-year-old girl in 2007.
And in 2005 he was charged with drunk driving.