PELICAN PARK – On the routine refuse collection of 21 September 2023, a horrifying discovery was made by the City of Cape Town’s Urban Waste Management in Pelican Park. While emptying a dustbin into the truck, officials were shocked to find a dog, still alive, taped inside a plastic bag.
The officials took immediate action to save the dog from potential harm from the truck machinery. The animal was found in a severe state, with his legs bound together and face taped shut. The critical condition of the dog showed clear signs of intentional abuse, as it bore multiple injuries and bruises.
Upon discovery, a concerned neighbour came forward to help the officials identify the dog’s residence. At the residence, the accused individual took the dog back, pretending ignorance about the incident and pretending to show concern for the dog and his injuries.
The dog’s owner, on learning about the event from neighbours, sought CCTV footage from a business across his residence. The security of the business reviewed the CCTV footage. The CCTV footage revealed the horrifying truth: the owner’s girlfriend, now identified as the main accused, was seen throwing the already bound dog into the refuse bin. She returned later, brutally beating the dog for over an hour with the blunt end of a wooden pole.
Following this revelation, the Cape of Good Hope SPCA was alerted, and Inspectors Jason Page and Werner Taljaard took charge of the investigation. They discovered the severely injured dog, named Scruffy, with his face and body showing traumatic signs of abuse. The footage left no doubt about the perpetrator. The accused confessed to her actions, justifying her cruelty as irritation with the dog, further inflamed when scolded by her partner when she tried to reprimand the dog.
“How the dog survived this torture is a miracle.” said Cape of Good Hope SPCA Chief Inspector Jaco Pieterse
After gathering evidence and witness statements, the inspectors arrested the accused, taking her to the Grassy Park police station. Charges of animal cruelty have been laid against her in terms of the Animals Protection Act 71 of 1962 for the appalling torture of the dog.
Scruffy is currently under the care of Cape of Good Hope SPCA Animal Hospital. Dr. Rivona Ramnanan, who attended to Scruffy, shared that the dog’s face and body were significantly swollen and bruised. Radiographs confirmed soft tissue damage and a fracture to the right zygomatic arch.
Dr. Ramnanan commented, “The nature of the injuries suggests blunt force trauma. The force required to cause such a fracture is substantial.”
The accused remained in police custody over the long weekend and appeared in the Wynberg Magistrates Court on Tuesday, 26 September 2023, where she applied for bail. The presiding magistrate granted the accused R1000 bail. The case has been postponed for further investigation and will be back in court on 01 November 2023.
