Carl Niehaus was left with egg on his face when he was forced on Monday to retract parts of his affidavit to the reopened inquest into trade unionist Dr Neil Aggett’s death in detention at Johannesburg’s John Vorster Square police station on 5 February 1982.
Niehaus, an ANC MK veteran, was also a detainee in the 1980s. He took the stand because his 2020 affidavit to the court was not accepted by counsel for Security Branch policeman Nicolaas Deetlefs, who was a warrant officer at the time. The dispute was over Deetlefs’ denials of ever assaulting Niehaus.
Niehaus, a witness for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), also said in his affidavit that he wanted to testify at the reopened inquest to dispute evidence given by a Security Branch policeman, Joseph Nyampule, in 2020. It was “in order that he [Nyampule] not be allowed to peddle lies”, Niehaus said.