Drug raid at Senator Park goes bad.

Police had to call for back-up to get out of a block of flats in the city centre after a crowd of about 140 residents stopped them from leaving.

During the stand-off on Wednesday at Senator Park, residents allegedly threw stones at police officers, causing what police estimate to be about R30 000 worth of damage to two cars.

The City of Cape Town says that almost weekly drug raids are conducted at Senator Park, and that metro police had gathered statistics of how many and what kind of drugs are seized there.

In the past three months, mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith said, 199 tik lollies, 60 units of tik, 101 units of rocks, 16 units of heroin, 92 parcels of dagga and dagga cigarettes, 24 parcels of cocaine, five crack rocks and seven units of unga (heroin mix) had been seized in 10 raids.

Smith said today that these seizures were enough to warrant ongoing raids at Senator Park. (We've found it here before so we're going to find it again! Great logic from Cape Town's number 1 nazi. No need to consider what it's like for the law abiding residents who are having to live through this each time? Do these folks really have no rights? What you're seeing here are the Metro cops acting outside the law. There is no warrant that covers all the apartments in the whole of Senator Park.)

During yesterday's raid, a 19-year-old man fell off a balcony, landed on a first floor window ledge, and was injured. Police claim that this happened when the young man jumped through a kitchen window after scuffling with police, while the man's girlfriend insists he was pushed by officers. (the story according the Voice)

The ambulance took the man to hospital after his fall and he has been charged with possession of drugs as well as escape from lawful custody. He is currently under police guard in hospital
(from IOL)