More arrests to come in corrupt police tender deals

More arrests are coming in the R1-million police tender corruption case, authorities have promised.

The NPA investigating directorate has already arrested seven businesspeople and Brigadier Stephina Mahlangu, an employee in the National Police Commissioner’s corporate services office – who are out on R3 000 bail each.

Directorate spokesperson Sindisiwe Seboka said the eight face charges of fraud, forgery, corruption and theft in connection to four irregular contracts valued at over R960 000.

The Pretoria businesspeople Kishene Chetty, Kumarasen Prithiviraj, Salamina Khoza, Harry Milanzi, Abigayle Esau, Lorette Joubert and Vhutshilo Mulaudzi were arrested on Friday afternoon and Saturday morning, and spent the weekend in the Silverton police station cells.

Seboka said Chetty the investigation linked to the companies implicated in the corruption namely Sifikile Furniture and Projects (Pty), Bambanani Marketing and Projects Pty Ltd, Baroma Construction and Office Consumables Pty Ltd, Super Stationery Distributors Pty Ltd and Vatika and Projects Pty Ltd.

She said the alleged corruption occurred between 2014 and 2017.

Seboka said directorate head Advocate Andrea Johnson was pleased with the arrests that “are a clear indication that no one, any government official, will be exempt [from arrest] where there is proof of criminality”.

She said Johnson commended the consistent hard work of the arresting team.

Seboka said more arrests were expected.

This is the not the first legal rodeo for the accused.

The corruption case was postponed to June 29, incidentally, this is the same day Chetty and Prithiviraj are expected in court on an unrelated fraud, theft and corruption case in connection with another fraudulent police contract for the repair of police vehicle.

In that case, Chetty and Prithiviraj are among 23 accused – 13 former police officers, six police clerks and four businesspeople.

Seboka said the group allegedly colluded with company, Paroex Auto and Mechanical Holdings directors to falsify the record to reflect that the company had not done any business with the state so it could win more tenders.

The company was supposed to complete one tender, then cool off for a year but the falsification of the record resulted in the company winning a further five tenders in the cooling off period.

Seboka said the six contracts totaling R172 516 were also highly inflated.

She said the accused police staffers enabled the fraud by looking the other way.

Some of the accused are retired officers Brigadier Lesetja Mogotlane, Colonel Lawrence Thahane, Lieutenant Colonel Tshepo Mashego, Lieutenant Colonel Veeran Naipal, Lieutenant Colonel Thurston Stadler, Captain Willem Jansen, Captain Rudolph Smit, Captain Schalk Coetzee, Captain Pieter Jacobs, Captain Zelda Botha, Warrant Officer Andre Simpson, Warrant Officer Famanda Mashele and Warrant Officer Modikwa Tsebenhlane.

The directorate is investigating a series of corruption cases in the SAPS dating back to 2010, including one against former crime intelligence boss Lieutenant General Richard Mdluli, who is accused of gross abuse of state funds.

Seboka said the directorate inherited these investigations in 2019.

In December 2020, the Pretoria regional court sentenced former chief financial officer of crime intelligence, Major General Solomon Lazaraus, to 10 years in prison for corruption.

Lazarus was arrested in 2012 in Pretoria for buying cars for his family on his department’s bank account.

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