By Everson Luhanga
- Seven of the country’s most senior police officers have been arrested for allegedly stealing millions of rands.
- BMW computer worker Brigadier Mokwele landed a million rand police job without any policing experience, is at the centre of a corruption scandal.
Seven of the country’s most senior police officers have been arrested for stealing millions of rands.
Lt Gen Khumalo, who runs Crime Intelligence, was one of those arrested. So was Maj Gen Lushaba, the man in charge of the money.
Lushaba was caught lying about how he lost his police gun to a sex worker. He was arrested again after handing himself in.
The police allegedly wasted R22.8-million buying a dodgy building in Durban. They also spent R22.7-million on a fancy hotel in Pretoria.
But the biggest shock is how Brigadier Mokwele got her job. She was made a top police officer, earning nearly R1-million a year. The problem is that she had never worked as a cop before.
Mokwele used to work with computers at BMW. Then suddenly, she became a police brigadier.
Chair of the police portfolio committee, Ian Cameron, said her job is at the centre of the whole mess.
“She was given a job paying close to R1-million even though she knows nothing about policing,” he said.
The officers face charges including stealing money, lying in court and blocking justice.
Opposition politician Dianne Kohler Barnard has been watching this case for months. She found out about the dodgy buildings in February.
Both purchases were approved by Lushaba and Khumalo. Now they are both in jail.
“These bad deals are just the beginning. Much worse is coming,” Cameron said.
Things got worse when police files went missing. Opposition MP Fadiel Adams had to restart the cases from scratch.
Cameron said more arrests are coming. He said the police force is full of criminals who are still working and getting paid.
One detective was caught with drugs. Another cop is on bail for rape. One officer sold secret police files.
“These people should not be wearing police uniforms,” Cameron said.
He wants all senior police officers checked properly to find more corrupt cops.
Pictured above: Lt Gen Khumalo.
Image source: File
