More accolades have been added to Sergeant Palesa Tsoaelo’s collection of trophies and certificates lauding her dedication to bringing sexual perpetrators and abusers to book.

This 44-year-old detective from the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offence Unit (FCS) in Secunda recently again scooped the awards for best investigating officer for FCS in the Gert Sibande District and Mpumalanga.

Tsoaelo has won these awards and others for consecutive years since 2022.

This investigator began her SAPS career in 2007 at the charge office in Greylingstad after completing her police training at Bisho in the Eastern Cape.

After working at the Leandra Police Station, she moved to the FCS unit in Secunda, where she has been since 2015, investigating sexual offences, crimes against children and GBV.

Tsoaelo was also hand-picked for the provincial serial and electric crime investigation task team and has been involved with this elite squad since July.

A survivor of GBV, she has extra compassion for victims and considers each good court outcome a victory.

“I have always wanted to be a police officer to make a difference in the lives of women and children,” explained Tsoaelo.

She attributed her success to dedication and hard work. She is also involved in community outreaches and stakeholder engagements.

“When I receive a new docket, I immediately work on it by obtaining statements, visiting crime scenes and collecting the evidence,” she explained.

“I then trace and arrest the suspect/s. I do not look at the time when I am working. All I want is to work on the docket while it is still new and try to finalise my investigation.”

The criteria for winning this award include the arrests an investigator makes, the convictions, sentences and the role they play in fighting and preventing crime by going the extra mile.

The recent gang rape of a sex worker is one of the hardest cases Tsoaelo has faced in her career.

“This woman’s injuries were so brutal and violent, she had to be hospitalised. Sex worker or not, no woman deserves this. Yet, when I opposed granting bail to the suspected perpetrators, their family members threatened me and insulted the sex victim.”

Tsoaelo believes only prayer helps her stay grounded and strong.

“God sent me to do this work and leads the way for me. He gives me the strength to seek justice for victims and overcome the challenges police officers face, such as vehicle and manpower shortages.”

Tsoaelo is thankful for the recognition of her efforts. The accolades encourage her to walk the extra mile, to be resilient and take pride in her profession.

She won the National Excellence Awards that was held at Durban ICC on January 26 ,2025 and now also stands a good chance to be nominated this year for National Excellence Awards that will be held later this month.