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National Police Commissioner General Kehla Sitole has acknowledged that police corruption has become increasingly current in the wake of numerous reports of employee involvement in criminal activities.
In a presentation to the Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) on Tuesday, November 3, the commissioner said that the widespread perception of police corruption negatively undermines the entire police fraternity.
Sitole said institutions such as the Crime Priority Investigation Directorate (DPCI or the Hawks), the Independent Police Investigation Directorate (IPID), the National Anti-Corruption Unit (Detective Services) and the Investigation Directorate (ID ) to investigate corrupt activities, including the activities of SAPS employees.
He said these bodies are investigating 397 cases involving the police, with more than 257 officers already detained in cases related to corruption.
Cases related to corruption
Sitole said that as soon as the allegations of corrupt activity are reported to SAPS, the necessary disciplinary procedures will be initiated immediately.
The most common types of corruption cases include violation of the Disaster Management Act, accepting bribes, defeating the ends of justice, assisting a fugitive, extortion, fraud, etc.
Disciplinary proceedings have been initiated against these employees and some of them have been suspended from service as a precautionary measure. Of the 286 cases reported since April 1, 2020, a total of 216 have been terminated, it said.
The 286 cases were further broken down as follows:
- Cases related to the Disaster Management Law: 136
- Helping a fugitive: 14
- Defeating the ends of justice: 38
- Fraud: 8
- Theft: 55
- Extortion: 35
High-profile cases
High-profile cases are high-priority cases involving senior managers and cases that management prioritized because of media attention, SAPS said.
From April 1, 2020 to date, SAPS said 79 employees have been involved in this case and 25 disciplinary proceedings have been completed.
The SAPS also pointed to specific cases that are currently under investigation, including:
- The “Blue Lights” case, in which former acting police commissioner Khomotso Phahlane was arrested following an investigation into a R86 million blue lights tender;
- Fraud related to the Forensic Data Analysts (FDA) software company that provides the police with hardware and infrastructure used in forensic investigations;
- Irregularities surrounding a Telkom tender.
Police corruption is more common
A September report from a civil society group Corruption surveillance found SAPS to be consistently one of the most complaining institutions in South Africa.
For the second year in a row, this focus area, at 13%, leads in terms of complaints received, Corruption Watch said.
“The complainants express their dismay and dismay with the police service in a variety of complaints, which mainly highlight the brutality, inconsideration and inhumanity towards the public and the lack of respect for law and order shown by officials and agents.”
Corruption Watch said bribery allegations account for 31% of police corruption cases, as officers solicit bribes from crime suspects and victims alike, and sometimes small businesses, as well as ordinary members of the public.
These demands for bribes are to allow suspected criminals, generally drug traffickers, to act with impunity or “make the files disappear,” he said.
The group said that small businesses, mostly informal traders, have their assets confiscated only to have them returned if the owners are willing to pay the amount of money asked of them.
In other cases, if a member of the public wishes to remain undisturbed and hassle-free, officers allude to the fact that they have the power and wherewithal to make a person’s life ‘very difficult’ in case they are unwilling. to cooperate, that is, apart with your money.
Such cases were common during the lockdown period, Corruption Watch said.
During this time, in some incidents of SAPS corruption cases received, it was alleged that officers would conduct random searches and raids in which compliant individuals were told they had to pay a fee to ensure the safety of their belongings. and to avoid arrest.
This type of behavior was also manifested in 29% of the complaints related to abuse of power. In these cases, where bribery was not obvious, the information Corruption Watch received pointed to officers who subjected members of the public to vicious beatings.
“We are informed that such sporadic acts of violence occurred when officers accused people of not complying with lockdown rules and regulations. Ironically, other abuses of power that the police are said to have committed involve the sale of prohibited products, mainly alcohol and cigarettes, and allowing unauthorized businesses to trade during the same period, ”he said.
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