Shock as three young teens were allegedly locked up with adult inmates in Limpopo police cell

The children’s parents say the teenagers were placed in a holding cell while police contacted the parents of the pupil involved and the teenagers’ own families. The children were later released and allegedly told their parents that they had been assaulted by inmates inside the cell.

The allegations have raised concerns about the safety of children in police custody and whether officers followed the legal and constitutional safeguards that apply when minors are detained.

Teenagers allegedly held in cell for several hours

Pastor Denis Maake, one of the parents, said the teenagers were arrested after school when police summoned the driver transporting them and instructed him to take them to the police station.

Maake said officers told the children they were contacting the parents of the pupil they were accused of assaulting, as well as their own parents. While the families were being contacted, one officer allegedly took the teenagers to a holding cell.

“While they were waiting, one officer took them to the holding cell, where they stayed for more than two hours,” Maake said.

He said the teenagers later reported the alleged assault to their parents. The parents then took them to hospital for medical attention and called for a full investigation.

One of the teenagers, who cannot be named because they are a minor, said they were held in cell number four for about three hours.

“The police officer pushed us inside and said he was going to lock the door three times. He indeed locked the door three times. We were beaten,” the teenager said.

The accounts described in the report indicate that the teenagers spent more than two hours in the cell, although the teenager interviewed said the detention lasted about three hours.

Child safety concerns raised

Dr Shaheda Omar, clinical director at the Teddy Bear Foundation, said the incident should prompt a wider review of the way police stations across South Africa safeguard children in custody.

Omar said effective protection required training, supervision, proper record-keeping, compliance monitoring and complaints mechanisms that work in practice. These safeguards are intended to ensure that the treatment of children in custody is documented, monitored and subject to accountability.

“Children’s rights should not depend on which police station they enter,” Omar said.

She said the Constitutional Court had recognised the potentially traumatic and degrading effects of detention, particularly when children were unlawfully detained.

“As child protection practitioners we cannot remain silent when institutions entrusted with protecting children are alleged to have placed them at risk,” Omar said. “Protecting children’s rights is not a favour, it is a constitutional and legal obligation.”

The central concern in the case is not only the allegation that the teenagers were detained, but also the reported decision to place them in a cell with adult inmates. Children in custody require safeguards that take account of their age and vulnerability. When those safeguards are absent, detention can become a source of additional harm rather than simply a temporary law-enforcement measure.

Experts warn of possible harm

Willem Els of the Security Initiative for Africa said the alleged detention of the teenagers alongside adult offenders raised serious questions about whether police complied with their duty to protect children in custody.

“Detaining children alongside adults exposes them to potential intimidation, physical or sexual abuse, exploitation and psychological trauma,” Els said.

He said police custody should never become an additional punishment for a child. Els added that, if the allegations were proven, officers responsible could face serious consequences, potentially including dismissal and criminal prosecution, depending on the evidence.

He stressed that the allegations had to be properly investigated before conclusions were reached, while warning that the potential psychological harm to the children should not be underestimated.

Calls for internal investigation

University of Limpopo criminologist Witness Maluleke said the incident was not the first case of its kind in South Africa. He said it was concerning that police officers were increasingly finding themselves on the wrong side of the law.

Maluleke said the officer involved should be suspended while an internal investigation was conducted. Although resource and infrastructure constraints could be considered, he said they could not justify conduct that violated the law.

Elizabeth Shingange, founder of the Elizabeth Home Foundation, said the organisation had accompanied the families to the police station to open a case.

Shingange said the families were told over the weekend that the officer had been arrested. However, she said they later received information that the officer would not appear in court because the matter was being handled internally.

That account adds to the questions surrounding the response to the allegations, including whether the matter will be investigated independently, whether the children’s complaints will be formally recorded and what steps will be taken to protect them during the process.

Police response awaited

Limpopo police spokesperson Brigadier Hlulani Mashaba had not responded to WhatsApp messages seeking comment by the time of publication.

Until the allegations are investigated, the circumstances surrounding the teenagers’ detention and the reported assault remain contested. The families, however, are seeking clarity on why the children were allegedly placed in a cell with adult inmates, what happened during the hours they spent there and whether the officer involved followed the required procedures.

The case has also renewed broader concerns about how children are treated when they come into contact with the criminal justice system. Any investigation will need to establish the sequence of events, identify the officers involved, assess the teenagers’ reported injuries and determine whether the applicable protections for minors were observed.