Sources have confirmed to The Citizen that Gauteng Hawks head Ebrahim Kadwa and Crime Intelligence’s Feroz Khan have been arrested by the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT).
It is understood that Kadwa was arrested on Saturday, and Khan was nabbed shortly after his apartment building in Houghton, Johannesburg, was raided on Sunday morning. He was not home at the time of the search.
Police confirmed that two senior officers and a civilian were arrested in connection with illicit precious metals transactions, corruption and related offences. They did not name the officers.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe confirmed the arrests followed an intensive investigation by the Gauteng Counter-Intelligence Operations (GCI-OPS).
“These arrests form part of ongoing efforts by law enforcement to dismantle criminal networks involved in the illicit trade of precious minerals and corruption,” Mathe added.
The suspects are expected to appear before the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court on Monday, facing charges that may include the unlawful dealing in precious metals, defeating the ends of justice, corruption, and contravention of applicable legislation regulating precious metals in South Africa.
Factionism at play?
A forensic security analyst said the arrest and investigation of senior police generals had created a leadership vacuum and deep uncertainty within the police.
“The vacuum exists because all the top police officers are now being identified in connection with General Sibiya, whether it is General Khumalo, General Masemola, General Khan or General Kadwa. The problem is that one group is building cases against the other, and at this stage, we do not know which of the two groups is actually guilty of offences,” the analyst told The Citizen.
He said some allegations appeared to be based on “innuendo and influence”, although he believed not all the claims could simply be dismissed.
“Not all of it can necessarily be sustained, but the damage is already there. The deficit in public confidence is going to have to be addressed,” he said.
The analyst added that the fallout could also affect other sensitive investigations and commissions that relied heavily on SAPS cooperation.
Referring to the handling of the reported theft of US$500 000 (R8.19 million) linked to the Phala Phala matter, the analyst said there were now questions around whether certain police officials had acted improperly while attempting to protect the President.
“There are allegations that procedures were not followed correctly in the handling of the Phala Phala matter. That now places another section of the police under scrutiny for allegedly not doing the job correctly while trying to protect the President,” he said.
This is a developing story
