Attempted murder and rape cases will have to be reinvestigated after a probe by the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD) into the activities of police in Kensington, Cape Town, found four police officers guilty of corruption, the police watchdog said on Tuesday.
These are among the findings of an ICD investigation into alleged corruption involving seven members of the Kensington police station.
In May this year, the ICD was handed video footage of police officers partying with notorious gang members and heard evidence from a witness about alleged corruption at the police station.
”Investigations against the said officers have been completed and a case docket has been forwarded to the director of public prosecutions with recommendations that four police officers be charged with corruption,” said ICD spokesperson Steve Mabona in a statement.
Mabona said that during investigations it was discovered that seven case dockets were withdrawn from court without proper consultation with witnesses.
This resulted in these cases being withdrawn, based on false investigator statements indicating that the complainants were no longer interested in pursuing the cases.
”We have also recommended that all those cases be reinvestigated. These cases include cases of attempted murder and rape,” said Mabona.
He said the ICD has informed the police provincial commissioner, Mwzandile Petros, and recommended that the implicated police officers be suspended and that they be charged departmentally. — Sapa