The Democratic Alliance in North West will write to the Provincial Police Commissioner, ­­­ Baile Motswenyane , calling for the immediate suspension of SAPS’s North West detective unit members who are being accused of alleged police misconduct, pending the outcome of their court case.

‘We welcome the decision by the National Prosecution Authority (NPA) to prosecute members of the unit, led by the region’s deputy commissioner, Major General Ntebo “Jan” Mabula, on charges of alleged police misconduct,’ said Chris Hattingh, DA campaigns manager in the North West.

According to him major general Ntebo “Jan” Mabula and members from the detective unit are due to appear in court to face charges relating to how they allegedly attempted to intimidate IPID investigators looking into corruption and fraud charges involving former acting police commissioner Khomotso Phahlane.

Mabula, along with Lieutenant-Colonels I Mdluli and Manamela, Captain Makatu, Ismael Dawood, Clifford Motome Kgorane, Samuel Senamela Kutumela, Tsietsi Johan Mano, Philip Mompati and Adam Moahloli, will be facing these charges in the Johannesburg regional court.

The North West team is implicated in various politically motivated arrests, including that of Gerrie Nel who was prosecuting former National Commissioner Jackie Selebi on charges of corruption.

Mabula and his team also arrested the forensic investigator Paul O’Sullivan and his assistant Sarah-Jane Trent. They were then, together with two IPID investigators charged by Mabula in 2017 for charges including fraud, racketeering and corruption. The charges were all later dropped.

IPID has also investigated the North West team for crimes ranging from murder to torture.

Mabula and the team who were referred to in the media as the Mabula Hit Squad are now subjected to a High Court order, that was issued last month,  prohibiting the police officials who are the subject of an IPID investigation from probing the IPID officials.

Ten members of the unit are also facing charges for the alleged torture of two suspects in a 2006 robbery of the Benoni SAP13 store. This involved R14-million and they were arrested by Mabula and his team and allegedly the suspects ended up dead or disappeared. One was allegedly murdered and two more were tortured

The Mabula team allegedly used the same modus operandi in the above matter as they did on the murder and torture case, as well as another matter where two of the Mabula team members are appearing in Klerksdorp court on charges of assault GBH. The case will be appearing again in court on 25-28 September 2018.

“It seems as if the Mabula team roamed free for way too long conducting police business on behalf of politicians and involved themselves in jungle justice. The fight against crime will never be won when we have police officers who have been compromised by corruption and unethical practice. The DA looks forward to the immediate suspension of Major Mabula and police officers fingered in this scandal,” said Hattingh.

“It is clear from the statement of DA that they will still write a letter to the Provincial Commissioner. We cannot, unfortunately, respond to something that will still take place,” said Brigadier Sabata Mokgwabone, North West police spokesperson.