Gauteng community safety MEC Khabisi Mosunkutu vows that his department will hold policemen accountable for brutality, negligence and bad conduct.

Speaking yesterday after complaints from victims flooded his office, Mosunkutu said many of these complaints were appeals for cases to be reinvestigated while others were finalised reports of misconduct from the Independent Complaints Directorate.

One of the cases involved the father of a murdered young girl from Thokoza, east of Johannesburg, who appealed to Mosunkutu's department for assistance.

Although he could not supply further details, Mosunkutu's spokesman, Sizwe Matshikiza, said that a local police officer was being investigated for "sloppy" work on the murder case.

The child was shot dead recently, and the case was struck off the roll in the Germiston Magistrate's Court three weeks ago because of "insufficient" evidence by the investigating officer.

The suspect was then released.

Her furious father then approached Mosunkutu's office, which ordered the case to be re-investigated. The suspect, who was in hiding at a hostel in Diepkloof, Soweto, was tracked down and rearrested.

The case is back in court.

The department is investigating the alleged negligence of the investigating officer, who is said to have bungled the case.

Mosunkutu said yesterday that his department was spending huge amounts in paying claimants who had won lawsuits against the police.

"We must continue to publicly condemn police brutality as it is not acceptable. We are not a rogue state," he said.