Photo: Man beaten to a pulp after returning lost phone to owner, who accused him of stealing

Walter Masuku said that he picked up a phone in a tavern last Sunday night, waited two days for the owner to claim it and when that didn't happen, he decided to insert his sim card and use it.

According to the 37-year-old man from Winterveld, Tshwane, South Africa, when the owner came and asked for it, being 'the good man he is', he gave the cellphone back.



But that turned out to be a bad mistake, because he was beaten to a pulp by the owner, who accused him of stealing it. The attack lasted for 30 minutes. Narrating his ordeal to Daily Sun SA, Walter said one of his friends borrowed the phone.

"My friend used the phone and gave it back to me. I left it in my room and went for the car wash to wash my car." He said there a man approached him and demanded he give him the cellphone because it belonged to him. "I told him it was at my house and as soon as I finished washing my car, I would go and get it for him."

Later, they went to get it but the man wanted his sim card, which Walter had misplaced.

"He started swearing at me, calling me names and when I tried to tell him I could buy him a new sim card to replace the one I had lost, he started beating me with fists and klaps and kicked me all over my body." Walter said his friend sold him out. He said what upset him was that when he opened a case, the police weren’t co-operative and he felt justice was not going to be done. When Daily Sun contacted Loate police spokesman Captain Samuel Sebola, he called him in and confirmed that a case of assault had been opened. "There is no way the police can refuse to open a case for someone. When our members went to see the suspect, he was not home but the matter is receiving attention."