Africa-Press – South-Africa. Three men have been arrested following the assault of two teenage boys at a Free State resort.
Free State police spokesperson Brigadier Motantsi Makhele said the men had been taken into custody.
Two of the men – Johan Nel, 33, from Bothaville and Jan Stephanus van der Westhuizen, 47, from Brandfort – appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.
They face charges of common assault and crimen injuria, said Makhele.
The matter was postponed to 25 January and they were released on a warning.
A third man, a 48-year-old resident of Bloemdal in Bloemfontein, was arrested shortly after midday on Wednesday. He is expected to appear in the same court on Thursday to face a charge of attempted murder, said Makhele.
Police initially opened an assault case after the two black boys were assaulted at a holiday resort in what appears to be a racially motivated attack on Christmas Day.
However, on Tuesday, police announced the case would be upgraded to attempted murder following a submission to the State prosecutor.
Makhele previously told News24 that the change was made after more information came to light during the investigation. The senior State prosecutor had given a directive that the charge could be changed to attempted murder, he said.
A video of the apparent racially motivated confrontation has gone viral on social media.
In the video, a white man is seen slapping a 13-year-old boy, who is then thrown back into the pool when he tries to get up. The man then appears to try to choke the 18-year-old. Attempts to break up the confrontation fail and the situation escalates when another man pulls the younger teen’s hair.
A scuffle then ensues, with one man pushing one of the boys into the pool and seemingly trying to keep his head under water. The video ends when a man drags the older teen by the head in the pool.
For More News And Analysis About South-Africa Follow Africa-Press
