Four men killed in an alleged mob justice attack in Du Noon on Sunday, 23 August, may have been saved if an emergency call to police had been handled differently.
A witness reportedly contacted the 10111 emergency number while the attack was taking place and attempted to alert police to the unfolding violence. The caller allegedly struggled to provide an exact location before the call was terminated.
The men’s charred bodies were later discovered on an open field near the N7 off-ramp along Malibongwe Drive. The discovery followed reports that the victims had been attacked and pushed towards a fire. The incident is being investigated by Western Cape police as four murders.
Ian Cameron, chairperson of Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Police, confirmed that his office had received a complaint about the handling of the emergency call. He said the caller was accompanied by children who witnessed the alleged attack and later returned to the area to find the four bodies.
Du Noon Mob Justice Witness Reportedly Called 10111 During Attack
The Du Noon mob justice attack was reportedly witnessed by members of the public who contacted police at about 1.30pm. Cameron said the complainant reported seeing people who had been tied up, assaulted and pushed towards a fire. No police officers were reportedly visible at the scene when the witness made the call.
“According to the complainant and the children present, they witnessed people who had been tied up being beaten and pushed towards a fire. There were no police visible at the scene. At exactly 1.30pm, they called 10111 to report what they described as murders in progress,” Cameron explained.
According to Cameron, the caller attempted to assist police by describing the location and using GPS to provide an approximate position. He said the operator repeatedly requested an exact location despite the caller explaining that people were in immediate danger.
10111 Call Handling Under Investigation After Four Bodies Found
The 10111 emergency call allegedly ended before police assistance reached the scene. Cameron said the caller later asked for the operator’s details after explaining that they were trying to help people whose lives were at risk, but the call was allegedly terminated.
“When they explained they were trying to help people whose lives were in immediate danger and later asked for the operator’s details, the call was allegedly terminated. When the family returned later, four charred bodies had reportedly been found. The children have understandably been left traumatised, both by what they witnessed and by the apparent failure of the emergency system,” Cameron said.
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He confirmed that the recording of the call has since been reviewed and that its handling was considered unacceptable. Disciplinary action is now being taken against the official involved, although Cameron said accountability should extend beyond the individual call operator.
Police 10111 System Faces Calls For Urgent Reform
The 10111 police emergency service has previously faced scrutiny over dropped calls, response times and operational challenges.
Cameron said he and Nicholas Gotsell MP had visited 10111 centres several times and witnessed ageing infrastructure, unreliable technology and difficult working conditions. He also pointed to staffing pressures and low morale among personnel.
“Nicholas Gotsell MP and I have visited the 10111 centre several times. We have seen ageing infrastructure, technology that is not always operational and staff working under extremely difficult circumstances. Morale is a serious challenge. That context matters, but it is zero excuse for failing to assist someone reporting an immediate threat to life,” he said.
Cameron said Parliament’s review of the 2022/23 financial year recorded a dropped or abandoned call rate of 26.44%. He added that average response times at some centres ranged between eight and 35 minutes, while separate parliamentary figures recorded more than 6.3 million dropped 10111 calls nationally over three financial years, although some centre information was incomplete and the category could include calls ended by callers.
He said the entire 10111 system should be rebuilt using modern technology, sufficient staffing, improved training, live-location capabilities, backup power and transparent performance monitoring. Cameron also called for government to seriously consider properly regulated partnerships with private-sector technology and emergency response providers.
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“Strengthening 10111 through private-sector partnerships was announced by the President in 2023, but the present model is plainly still not delivering the emergency service South Africans should be able to rely on,” Cameron said.
“An emergency caller witnessing a crime in progress next to a major national road cannot reasonably be expected to provide a street number before assistance is dispatched. The system should help locate the emergency, not search for reasons to reject the call,” he said.
