News / National
Transgender gay activist sues minister, top cops for $10million
06 Mar 2015 at 16:47hrs | Views
A cross-dressing transgender gay activist, who was last year arrested for allegedly using a ladies toilet at a local hotel, has filed papers suing a minister and three others for $10,8 million.
Ricky Nathanson who says he is a transgender woman in court papers filed at the High court in Bulawayo, named Home Affairs minister Kembo Mohadi, Police Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuri, the officer-in-charge of ZRP Bulawayo Central, and a Zanu Pf youth who raised the alarm when he found Nathanson in the toilet, as respondents.
He is demanding $2,7 million from each of the respondents.
Nathanson, 49, was charged but a court acquitted him of charges of criminal nuisance after prosecutors failed to prove their case.
Bulawayo magistrate Abednico Ndebele ruled that it was not a crime for a man to enter a toilet for females or the other way round.
Nathanson in his summons said: On January 16, 2014, I was publicly arrested by six police officers in riot gear and removed from the bar and taken to Bulawayo Central Police Station. The arrest was at the instigation of Farai Mteliso herein who acted without just, reasonable or probable cause, and maliciously. Mteliso tried to extort money from me but failed, said Nathanson.
He said he was humiliated by police at Bulawayo Central Police Station who forced him to strip naked so that they could verify his sex.
Nathanson said police officers jeered at him and insulted him as he undressed and stared morbidly at him, worsening his humiliation.
He said he was detained for 48 hours before being taken to court.
Nathanson has instructed his lawyers to demand from each of the defendants $100 000 for wrongful arrest, $100 000 for wrongful detention, $100 000 for malicious prosecution, $300 000 for emotional distress and contumelia, $100, 000 for exemplary damages and $2 million for constitutional damages.
Source - Byo24News
