The eight presidential protection officers, who pulled over a vehicle and accosted the driver along the N1 highway in Johannesburg, claimed that they wanted to check whether the driver was a threat.
The VIP protection officers, who are linked to Deputy President Paul Mashatile's security detail, are on trial in the Randburg Magistrate's Court for assault, pointing of a firearm, and other charges.
The officers were captured on video dragging a man from a metallic blue VW, and then kicking him as he lay on the ground in July 2023.