Abraham Wilson, an alleged henchman of suspected 28s gang boss Ralph Stanfield, is dead. His death, which occurred within the walls of Pollsmoor Prison, has sparked outrage and allegations of a brutal assault. Wilson’s family received the devastating news from Department of Correctional Services (DCS) officials over the weekend, following an incident on Friday morning.
Shocking accounts from within Pollsmoor Prison paint a grim picture of Wilson’s final moments. A 51-year-old woman from Valhalla Park, who requested anonymity, described the scene: “Abraham was in a cell with other people when this happened. He is a sickly guy who they have targeted for a long time. Because these men are the co-accused of Ralph, the police continually raid them – which is part of their work, but beating them is not.
"When they were first arrested, the EST teams along with the police would call each of the accused by their names and would beat them and water bomb them. In the water bombing incident is when Abraham got very sick and the prison officials had to send him to hospital after he suffered a heart attack during the incident.”
These claims suggest a pattern of alleged abuse targeting Wilson and his co-accused, all linked to the high-profile Stanfield case. The woman’s account points to a history of alleged mistreatment, culminating in the fatal incident on Friday. The alleged assault, witnessed by other inmates, reportedly involved members of the Emergency Support Team (EST).
Wilson’s case was significant; he was set to stand trial alongside Stanfield and his wife, Nicole Johnson, in a major investigation encompassing various high-profile hits, the murder of City of Cape Town staffer Wendy Kloppers, and allegations of tender collusion involving former DA Mayco Member Malusi Booi. The sheer scale of this case underscores the high stakes surrounding Wilson’s imprisonment.
A source within Pollsmoor Prison alleges that Wilson was targeted in an attempt to force him to betray Stanfield: “On Friday, the EST came to search. They are known as the Taakmag of the tronk and always search the high-profile inmates. Each time the Taakmag or the boere came to Abrahams they kept asking about Ralph but he never had anything to say to them. On Friday, they told him to lie plat and when he said he can’t lie on the floor because of his kidneys, they started moering him and he died right there in the cell.” This insider account paints a picture of deliberate targeting and alleged brutality leading to Wilson’s death.
DCS spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo confirmed Wilson’s death, stating that he “collapsed and was confirmed dead by a medical doctor. The family was accordingly informed. An autopsy will have to be conducted in determining the actual cause of death.”
Nxumalo refused to release any medical information and dismissed claims of targeting, calling them “nonsense.” However, the conflicting accounts and the serious allegations of assault raise significant concerns and demand a thorough and transparent investigation.
