Viral video of McLaren crash sparks calls for road safety.
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Two months after a high-speed crash involving a McLaren supercar in Sea Point, police have yet to charge anyone, despite video footage and widespread public outcry.
The March 1 incident, which occurred on High Level Road, saw a McLaren 570S slam into a wall after allegedly reaching speeds of up to 200km/h. The driver, identified as Nigerian rapper Prince Daniel Obioma — known by his stage name 3GAR — was hospitalised following the crash.
While a case of reckless and negligent driving is under investigation, Western Cape police confirmed that no arrests have been made and no charges have been filed.
The docket has been submitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for a decision.
“A reckless and negligent driving case is being investigated, as in this case where the driver was taken to hospital by ambulance for medical treatment due to his injuries at the time,” said police spokesperson Captain FC van Wyk.
“The case docket was referred to the DPP for decision. Nobody has been charged yet.”
The delay has drawn strong criticism from both political figures and members of the public, who argue that the matter should have been swiftly dealt with, given the availability of CCTV footage showing the vehicle travelling at high speed prior to the crash.
Nicholas Gotsell of the DA’s Select Committee for Security and Justice said the lack of progress reflects poorly on the South African Police Service (SAPS).
“It has been two months since a McLaren supercar, driven recklessly through Sea Point by a well-known rapper, crashed into a wall. Yet, SAPS has still not laid any charges or made any arrests,” Gotsell said.
“Despite clear CCTV footage and mounting public frustration, the investigation remains stalled, and the silence from SAPS is deafening.”
Gotsell said he had written twice to Western Cape Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Thembisile Patekile requesting clarity on the case’s progress.
“The response was non-committal and basically says that he cannot offer a timeline on when it will be completed.”
He questioned why an incident supported by visual evidence could remain unresolved for so long, particularly when investigated by a station like Sea Point, which does not experience the same high case volume as others in the province.
“My response to him was that Sea Point police station is not nearly as busy as other stations in the Western Cape, and therefore I find it strange that an investigation like this one has not delivered any decisions in two months’ time.”
Gotsell linked this lack of urgency to a broader pattern of sluggish responses to road deaths and reckless driving in Cape Town.
He was speaking after attending proceedings in an unrelated case at the Cape Town Magistrates’ Court — the 1 February crash in Bree Street that claimed the life of a young dentist. That case has also faced repeated delays and was recently postponed again until 26 September 2025.
“Alarmingly, the accused filed a motion to bar the media from future proceedings,” Gotsell said. “While it is ultimately up to the court to decide, justice in cases like these must be done and be seen to be done. Too many still treat Cape Town’s roads as their personal race tracks — the public deserves transparency.”
He expressed frustration over what he described as the rapper’s rebranding on social media following the crash.
“Meanwhile, the rapper who crashed the McLaren continues to reinvent himself online, now boasting about his other car — fortunately an SUV,” Gotsell said.
“But his safety does not undo the danger he posed to others. His narrative of victimhood has been widely accepted by fans — and, it seems, by the police as well.”
He confirmed that he would escalate the matter by writing to Ian Cameron, Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Police, urging that SAPS be summoned to explain why a high-profile case with “obvious evidence” had not moved forward.
“There must be consequences — not just to hold this individual accountable, but to send a clear message: reckless driving endangers lives, and no amount of fame or fanfare will place you above the law.”
Sea Point ward councillor Nicola Jowell echoed the call for swift enforcement.
“If there is no consequence or action, then it makes enforcement and tackling the issues such as speeding and noisy vehicles even more of an uphill battle,” she said.
With the case now in the hands of the DPP, residents and road safety advocates alike are demanding that the matter not be allowed to fade from public attention.