Pretoria – The South African Police Service (SAPS) has dismissed what it describes as false and misleading claims circulating on social media that link the death in police custody of a Nigerian national in Sunnyside to anti-illegal immigrant protests.
According to SAPS, the incident occurred on 28 June 2026 when members of the SAPS Tshwane Drugs Team, acting on intelligence, arrested a Nigerian national at his apartment in the Sunnyside policing precinct for allegedly being in possession of drugs.
Police said the suspect was handcuffed during the arrest and collapsed while officers were taking him into custody.
Officers immediately called for emergency medical assistance, but paramedics declared the man dead at the scene.
Because the death occurred while the suspect was in police custody, the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) was immediately notified, as required by law.
SAPS said an inquest docket was opened alongside a case of possession of drugs. The drugs allegedly recovered at the apartment were booked into the SAPS 13 evidence store.
Police added that both a SAPS detective and an IPID investigator attended the post-mortem examination, where it was decided that SAPS would continue investigating the matter pending the outcome of the post-mortem report.
The police have urged the public not to spread misinformation about the incident.
“SAPS strongly rejects attempts to link this incident to anti-illegal immigrants protests. Such claims are baseless and an attempt to mislead the public,” the police said in a statement.
The circumstances surrounding the man’s death remain under investigation, with the post-mortem results expected to assist investigators in determining the cause of death.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
