Even more proof that dagga can make you dof
April 23 2008 at 06:37AM
By Caryn Dolley
In a wild attempt to escape the law, a man sitting on rocks at Sea Point allegedly threw a bag containing drugs into the water, then swam 300 metres out to sea to evade the two police reservists he had spotted.
A member of the public who saw what was happening jumped in and swam after the suspect to try and capture him.
And, to add to the mayhem, a power outage meant the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) in Bakoven was unable to send rescue boats out immediately to catch the suspect or to help the man swimming after him.
The Metro Red Cross rescue helicopter had to be sent to pluck them from the water instead.
On Tuesday, hours after the incident, police spokesperson Bernadine Steyn said the suspect was in hospital under police guard and faced a charge of possession of dagga.
She said reservists from the Sea Point police station were on patrol when they saw a man sitting on rocks near the Sea Point swimming pool.
When the man saw the reservists, he threw a black bag into the water and then jumped in after it, Steyn said.
Police divers rushed to the scene and the suspect was airlifted from the water and the black bag retrieved.
Two "stops" of dagga were also confiscated.
The suspect was taken to hospital as he had apparently been exhausted by the swim.
It appeared the man who swam after him did not need medical attention.
The rescue helicopter's spokesperson, Vanessa Horn, said the suspect and swimmer had been picked up from the water and airlifted to dry land.
"Once there the suspect was placed in police custody."
The Bakoven NSRI had received a call about a swimmer who was at least 300m from the Sea Point Pavilion, the station's commander, Mark Thompson, said.
"But because there was load-shedding we couldn't launch," he said.
NSRI spokesperson Craig Lambinon said that because of the power outage in Bakoven, the Table Bay station had also been alerted.
Lambinon said, however, that no vessels from either station had gone to the scene as the suspect and member of the public had by then been hoisted out of the water.
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April 23 2008 at 06:37AM
By Caryn Dolley
In a wild attempt to escape the law, a man sitting on rocks at Sea Point allegedly threw a bag containing drugs into the water, then swam 300 metres out to sea to evade the two police reservists he had spotted.
A member of the public who saw what was happening jumped in and swam after the suspect to try and capture him.
And, to add to the mayhem, a power outage meant the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) in Bakoven was unable to send rescue boats out immediately to catch the suspect or to help the man swimming after him.
The Metro Red Cross rescue helicopter had to be sent to pluck them from the water instead.
On Tuesday, hours after the incident, police spokesperson Bernadine Steyn said the suspect was in hospital under police guard and faced a charge of possession of dagga.
She said reservists from the Sea Point police station were on patrol when they saw a man sitting on rocks near the Sea Point swimming pool.
When the man saw the reservists, he threw a black bag into the water and then jumped in after it, Steyn said.
Police divers rushed to the scene and the suspect was airlifted from the water and the black bag retrieved.
Two "stops" of dagga were also confiscated.
The suspect was taken to hospital as he had apparently been exhausted by the swim.
It appeared the man who swam after him did not need medical attention.
The rescue helicopter's spokesperson, Vanessa Horn, said the suspect and swimmer had been picked up from the water and airlifted to dry land.
"Once there the suspect was placed in police custody."
The Bakoven NSRI had received a call about a swimmer who was at least 300m from the Sea Point Pavilion, the station's commander, Mark Thompson, said.
"But because there was load-shedding we couldn't launch," he said.
NSRI spokesperson Craig Lambinon said that because of the power outage in Bakoven, the Table Bay station had also been alerted.
Lambinon said, however, that no vessels from either station had gone to the scene as the suspect and member of the public had by then been hoisted out of the water.
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