Police have admitted that investigators were unable to secure or process the original Phala Phala burglary crime scene in line with standard forensic procedure, which changed the trajectory of the investigation.
The admission is contained in a written response submitted by Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Police after MPs expressed dissatisfaction with explanations previously provided by police leadership and the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) on the matter.
“Certain aspects of the matter, including delayed reporting, reliance on oversight-driven processes, and the absence of corroborating evidence in key areas, contributed to perceptions of inconsistency or reactive conduct,” the 19-page feedback report reads.
The committee had last month summoned police officials and Ipid to account for several aspects of the investigation, mainly how former Presidential Protection Unit head Maj-Gen Wally Rhoode and Sgt Hlulani Rekhoto were cleared of wrongdoing.
This despite both the Public Protector and the independent police investigating unit recommending that he and another officer face disciplinary steps for misconduct.
MPs unconvinced
The initial briefing, presented by acting national commissioner Lt-Gen Puleng Dimpane and Cachalia, left MPs unconvinced, prompting the committee to postpone deliberations and demand a more detailed response.
In his subsequent submission, sent to the committee ahead of the second scheduled meeting on Wednesday, Cachalia acknowledged that investigators faced a major obstacle from the outset.
“The handling of the crime scene was affected by the timing of the formal reporting of the matter to the investigative authorities,” the report states.
Burglary reported late
According to the document, the burglary was only formally reported to the Hawks in 2022, long after the incident had taken place.
“As a result, the original crime scene could no longer be secured or processed in its original state in accordance with standard forensic procedures,” the report says.
The admission raises fresh concerns about whether crucial evidence may have been lost before investigators had an opportunity to conduct a proper forensic examination.
Reconstruction of crime scene
The reconstruction was intended to establish the sequence of events and identify any evidence that could assist investigators.
“In order to mitigate this limitation, a reconstruction of the crime scene was conducted with the assistance of specialised crime scene management personnel,” the report explains.
The report also reveals that investigators recovered no physical exhibits when the matter was eventually processed.
“The investigation established that no physical exhibits were recovered at the crime scene at the time it was eventually processed. Consequently, no items were seized or formally booked into evidence as part of the criminal case,” the document states.
Ipid findings
The renewed scrutiny of the Phala Phala investigation comes against the backdrop of explosive findings by the Ipid.
The report alleges that members of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s protection team may have engaged in unlawful conduct while pursuing suspects linked to the 2020 burglary at the president’s Limpopo game farm, where hundreds of thousands of dollars were stolen.
According to the watchdog’s findings, Rhoode and other members of the Presidential Protection Unit were implicated in an off-the-books operation to trace suspects after large sums of foreign currency were stolen from the farm.
Ipid found evidence suggesting that suspects were tracked down, questioned outside formal legal processes and, in some instances, allegedly paid money in exchange for their silence about the theft.
- Police admitted investigators failed to secure or properly process the original Phala Phala burglary crime scene due to delayed reporting, impacting the investigation's course.
- Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia acknowledged in a report that the burglary was reported late to the Hawks in 2022, preventing standard forensic procedures and resulting in no physical evidence being recovered.
- The police conducted a crime scene reconstruction with specialists to compensate for lost evidence but no physical exhibits were recovered or recorded in the case file.
- Parliamentary MPs remain unconvinced after police briefings on why key officers, including Maj-Gen Wally Rhoode, were cleared despite recommendations for disciplinary action by the Public Protector and Ipid.
- Ipid’s investigation revealed possible unlawful conduct by President Ramaphosa’s protection officers, including off-the-record suspect tracking and alleged payments to silence suspects related to the burglary.
