Men in blue arrested for corruption
MOROKE
While the greater majority of SAPS members have been hard at work to flatten the curve of the spread of the Covid-19 virus, there have been some members arrested for committing some heinous crimes thus bringing into disrepute both the SAPS as well as the good work its members are doing.
The SAPS in Mecklenburg have arrested two police officers for alleged corruption on Wednesday 29 July 2021. The two police Constables aged 29 appeared in the Mecklenburg Magistrate’s Court on 30 July 2021, while the third suspect, a Police Sergeant appeared before the court on 3 August 2021.
It is alleged that on 28 July 2021 at about 16:00 in the afternoon, police officers from the Burgesfort cluster entered business premises at Ga-kgwete village in the Mecklenburg policing area and found the owner.
They started to search inside but didn’t find anything and they proceeded to his rental place nearby where they continued with the search inside the house. The trio allegedly discovered twelve boxes full of Remington Gold cigarettes worth R320 000.
“The 30 year old suspect was arrested immediately for dealing in illicit cigarettes and detained at Mecklenburg Police Station. The two police officers left the station, leaving behind their colleague to complete registering the exhibits. It was later discovered by the senior Police Officer at the station that the member registered 8 boxes of the recovered illicit cigarettes instead of twelve,” revealed Limpopo SAPS spokesman Brig Motlafelo Mojapelo.
He added, “When the police were still busy with initial investigations, a phone call was reportedly received from the two police officers who left, that they have been involved in a car accident.
“Upon arrival at the scene, Police discovered the remaining four boxes of illicit cigarettes inside the vehicle. The Constables were arrested at the scene and the other crew member had already fled the scene.”
Mojapelo said the sergeant handed himself to SAPS on Friday.
The Provincial Commissioner of Police in Limpopo Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe has welcomed the arrest.” We will not rest until all corrupt members are routed from the SAPS”, reiterated Lieutenant General Hadebe.
