A 21-year-old man lost his memory, his ability to articulate (speak) and his ability to move as a result of attacks by officers from the Republic of Mozambique Police (PRM), assigned to the 9th Police Station in Mathlemele, in the city of Matola, Maputo province.

Medical forecasts indicate that the young man will only be able to recover his memory in at least three months. At the moment, he doesn't recognize people and is dependent on support to carry out basic activities.

According to the Center for Democracy and Human Development (CDD), the victim was assaulted at the police station together with his cousin. The victims had been pointed out by two other citizens as the alleged cell phone thieves during a diversion at a market in the neighborhood.

They were taken to the police station to clear up the assumption, which was not confirmed by the police after a search.

The PRM kept the two victims in custody, even after finding no evidence of theft, and mistreated them.

"The PRM officers assigned to the 9th Police Station in Mathlemele then severely tortured the young men with truncheons and kicks, now claiming that they were drunk," reads the document, which states that the false suspicion and assaults took place on March 29.

The 21-year-old lost consciousness immediately after the attacks and his cousin was tortured until the morning of March 30, when the young men were released.

"The parents of the tortured children approached the police station where the events took place to find out what had happened. However, they were unsuccessful, as the officers there refused to give any information about who had assaulted their children, but only opened a report and sent them to hospital. It should be noted that at the hospital, tests were carried out on the victim, and the doctors declared that the 21-year-old had lost his memory as a result of the assault and that he was expected to recover it in three months' time," the document states.