On Friday morning, 8 November 2024, while much of the country was looking forward to the weekend, National Senior Inspector Arno de Klerk and National Senior Inspector Denise Govender were grappling with an utterly horrific incident. At approximately 11:00, Senior Inspector de Klerk received an urgent call from the State Vet, asking if the NSPCA was aware of a horrific incident that had occurred at OR Tambo Airport in the early hours of that morning.
A French national had travelled from France to Johannesburg on her way to Brazil. She boarded the plane with her dog, after purchasing a ticket for the extra “passenger”, and arrived in South Africa on 6 November 2024. At approximately 03:30 am on the morning of 8 November 2024, video footage from the Airport Company South Africa (ACSA) shows the woman strolling through the Atrium at OR Tambo International Airport, with her small black dog running freely. As the dog reaches her, the woman picks the dog up and callously throws it over the balcony railing.
The three-story fall was not fatal. The dog, severely injured and bleeding from the mouth, lay on the ground, barely alive but still clinging to life. Airport officials immediately contacted the Kempton Park SPCA for assistance. Inspectors from the SPCA arrived at the scene and took the suffering dog into their care. At a nearby veterinary hospital, it was confirmed that the dog had sustained extensive internal injuries and was euthanised to end its suffering.
Meanwhile, OR Tambo officials halted the flight to Brazil to investigate. A check of the passenger manifest revealed that the elderly woman was not listed as having boarded the flight, meaning she was still within the airport. Senior Inspector Govender from NSPCA was assigned to investigate the incident and is in the process of laying criminal charges against the French national with the local SAPS.
The NSPCA is both shocked and appalled by this incident. There is an alert out for the woman responsible for this horrific act and we will not rest until she is brought to justice. The NSPCA remains steadfast in its commitment to hold accountable anyone involved in animal cruelty, regardless of their nationality or age.
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