The Lebombo Port Of Entry policeman who had been facing charges of kidnapping, which have since been dismissed by a KwaZulu-Natal court, has laid criminal charges against the Hawks.

The charges against the Hawks include kidnapping, theft, extortion, malicious damage to property, assault with the intention to do grievous bodily harm, defeating the ends of justice, arson and attempted murder.

Sergeant Samkelo Honest Mlotshwa (39) said he was also instituting a civil lawsuit against the SAPS for what he termed wrongful arrest and torture.

He and two others were charged with the kidnapping of a KwaZulu-Natal businessman in KwaDukuza on the night of September 10 last year.

Desai’s Cash and Carry owner, Zakariyya Desai, was kidnapped by men armed with AK-47 automatic assault rifles when came out of a mosque.

The kidnappers, who were driving a VW Polo, fired shots, but no one was hit.

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The KZN police’s Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations, otherwise known as the Hawks, took over the investigation of the kidnapping.

Detectives crisscrossed several provinces in the country, including Gauteng and Mpumalanga.

On November 21, 2024 the Hawks raided Mlotshwa’s house in Matsulu. They allegedly used force to enter the house.

They did not find anyone in the house, but after the raid it was destroyed by fire, allegedly started by arsonists.

His lawyer, Adv Vusi Sekgodi, said Mlotshwa told him that the Hawks had requested community members to torch the house, claiming he was a kidnapper.

The Hawks went to Mlotshwa’s other house in the same township. They searched it and found his service pistol which they later handed in to the Matsulu Police Station.

They then went to his barracks at the Lebombo Port of Entry, but Mlotshwa was not there either.

He has since accused the police of stealing some of his belongings during the searches.

“They stole black shoes, one boot, two perfumes, sunglasses, a PlayStation 5 with two of its controls, a five-litre bottle containing R5 coins, and R10 000 cash that was meant for a stokvel,” said Mlotshwa

On November 23, 2024, Mlotshwa was arrested in Bilene by Mozambique Republic Police officers who, according to him, introduced themselves as members of Interpol.

“They locked me up at a police station called Decima Oitava Esquadra in Maputo and beat me up at various stages over five days. On November 28 they handed me over to the Hawks at the Lebombo Port of Entry, without following the necessary extradition laws,” said Mlotshwa.

The Hawks provincial spokesperson in KZN, Lieutenant Colonel Simphiwe Mhlongo, informed Lowvelder at the time that Mlotshwa had been arrested in Mbombela.

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Mlotshwa was taken to KwaDukuza in KZN where he joined his co-accused, Ismael Maulide Ramos Nangy and Stefane Pereita Da Costa Brites, who had been arrested previously in Gauteng.

The three men spent Christmas 2024 and New Year in the Durban Westville Prison. The charges against them were thrown out of the KwaDukuza Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, January 22, due to lack of convincing evidence.

“During our incarceration I was booked out several times by officers and taken to a farm where I was subjected to torture, as the police believed I knew Desai’s whereabouts,” claimed Mlotshwa.

He said the police told the court in KwaDukuza that he was caught and arrested in Komatipoort.

“It was a lie. They know that they should have followed the correct extradition procedures, but they ignored these on purpose,” explained Mlotshwa.

Mlotshwa’s explanation was supported by an entry in the police Occurrence Book (OB) at the Lebombo Port Of Entry, of which Lowvelder has a copy, that indicates he was handed over to the Hawks tracing team by Mozambican police and immigration officers.

Mlotshwa, Nangy and Brites have approached their attorneys to institute civil lawsuits against the police. They laid criminal charges at the Bedfordview Police Station on Wednesday, February 19.

The matter has been taken up by the Independent Police Investigation Directorate (IPID).

“The case has been reported to IPID and it is under investigation. The investigation is at an early stage,” said IPID national spokesperson, Phaladi Shuping.

Mhlongo said they were not aware of the charges.

“The Hawks management in KwaZulu-Natal is not aware of any criminal case opened against the members at this stage. However, we can confirm that the accused had been arrested and charged for kidnapping and extortion. The case has since been withdrawn against him and his co-accused,” said Mhlongo

Desai was released from captivity during the second weekend of February, fairly unscathed, but Mhlongo refused to comment further about the release.

Mlotshwa returned to work at the Lebombo Port of Entry on Thursday, March 13, and said a doctor had booked him off since his release from police custody.

“I was referred to psychologists for the traumatic experience that I was subjected to. It is even very sad that I was at work at the Lebombo Port of Entry when the alleged kidnapping took place,” said Mlotshwa