PHILISIWE Cele wants her gun back!
The 45-year-old mother of three says she doesn’t feel safe without it. The gun is held by cops at the Rosebank Police Station.
She said it was taken away from her by police during an argument with authorities at Bophelo Trust in Rosebank.
Philisiwe from Alberton in Ekurhuleni said she had gone to the office to claim money from her late husband’s compensation fund. Her husband was a cop and he died in 2005. She wanted the money to pay her daughter’s university fees.
She told Daily Sun: “I had provided all the necessary documents but when I arrived there I was told I could only claim when my daughter turned 18.
“This led to a huge argument between me and the staff. I was reaching into my bag to take out documents when a guard spotted my gun. He started shouting I was going to kill them all. Everyone ran for cover and the guard grabbed me. Cops were called and I was arrested and taken to the police station.”
A case of attempted murder was opened against Philisiwe, but was dropped in court.
She said in 2007 she had decided to arm herself in order to protect herself and her three children as they lived in a dangerous area.
She said: “Since my husband died my house has been broken into three times. I have also been hijacked.”
Sergeant Bonginkosi Mdletshe said cops need to follow certain steps before they can return the gun to her.
“We’ll investigate if she’s fit to own a gun, even though she has a licence. We also need to know what happened on the day she was arrested,” he said.
