Between October 27, 1971 and January 30, 1990, seven people died here while being held indefinitely under apartheid’s detention laws. An eighth man died in hospital a week after being interrogated by the security branch on the infamous tenth floor. The lift went only to the ninth floor. Political prisoners were walked up a final flight of stairs to reach the tenth. An undetermined number of detainees were tortured. The station was named after Prime Minister BJ Vorster. In September 1997, John Vorster Square was renamed and transformed into Johannesburg Central Police Station. The bronze bust of Vorster was removed to the police museum.