FORMER Vlakplaas commander Eugene de Kock, who faces 106 charges ranging from fraud to eight counts of murder when his trial starts next month, allegedly tried to discredit Safety and Security Minister Sydney Mufamadi by portraying him as an erstwhile police informer.
Sources close to the investigation into De Kock and police Third Force activities said this week that De Kock had claimed during negotiations on a possible plea bargain last year that Mufamadi had been paid for information during the apartheid era.
The WM&G has obtained independent confirmation from a judicial source that De Kock had indeed made the claims.
There is understood to be a belief in circles close to Mufamadi that De Kock’s claims could have been part of a larger plot to discredit Mufamadi, involving current and former police officers who regard Mufamadi’s attempts at police reform a threat.
Police sources said they believed the “plot” against Mufamadi could have been a factor in the unexpected announcement by General Johan van der Merwe that he would retire at the end of March.
Mufamadi was not available for comment, but sources close to him said it had played no role.
Van der Merwe yesterday said the possibility of a plot “is being investigated fully at the moment and no report has been submitted to the minister yet”.