The inquest into the death in detention of Dr. Neil Aggett is adjourned

A free Dr. Neil Aggett poster c. 1980s

Date: 29 Jun 1982
Updated: 29 Jun 2026

The inquest into the death in detention of the white trade union leader, Dr. Neil Aggett was adjourned until 20 September. This was after the Court was told by the Head of Interrogation at John Vorster Square, Major Arthur Cronwright that the Security Police withheld statements by Dr. Aggett. The police claimed to have done so because the statements contained secret information relating to the South African Communist Party (SACP), and that Major Arthur Cronwright had given permission for Dr. Aggett to be interrogated for a sixty-two hour period. On 21 December, 1982 the inquest, headed by Johannesburg magistrate, Pieter Kotze found that no one was to blame for Dr. Aggett’s death.

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01South African History Online, ‘An inquest into the death in detention of the white trade union leader, Dr. Neil Aggett opens’, [online], available at www.sahistory.org.za (Accessed: 24 May 2013)
02O’Malley, P. ‘1982’, from Nelson Mandela Centre of Memory, [online], available at www.nelsonmandela.org.za (Accessed: 24 May 2013)

Last updated · 29 Jun 2026

Cite this entry

South African History Online. (2013, June 28). The inquest into the death in detention of Dr. Neil Aggett is adjourned. South African History Online. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095980

South African History Online (2013) 'The inquest into the death in detention of Dr. Neil Aggett is adjourned', South African History Online, 28 June. Available at: https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095980 (Accessed: 23 July 2026).

South African History Online, The inquest into the death in detention of Dr. Neil Aggett is adjourned [website], https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095980, (accessed 23 July 2026).

"The inquest into the death in detention of Dr. Neil Aggett is adjourned." South African History Online, 28 June 2013, https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095980. Accessed 23 July 2026.

South African History Online. "The inquest into the death in detention of Dr. Neil Aggett is adjourned." South African History Online. June 28, 2013. https://sahistory.org.za/ref/E-0095980.