Hard questions to be asked about quality of our detectives

10 December 2014 - 02:23 By The Times Editorial
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Four years and many millions of rands later, our justice authorities have had to endure the humiliation of watching British businessman Shrien Dewani fly out of the country after being acquitted of the murder of his wife, Anni, while on their honeymoon in Cape Town.

There has been much outrage at the decision to discharge Dewani - as well as a torrent of criticism of Cape Town High Court Judge Jeanette Traverso - but she was correct in finding that the state's evidence had "fallen far below" the level needed to secure a conviction.

The truth is that the evidence of the state's two main witnesses, themselves involved in the terrible murder of Anni in Gugulethu in November 2010, was hopelessly contradictory and riddled with lies.

The National Prosecuting Authority must shoulder some responsibility for not being adequately prepared. How much time do you need to brush up for a case that commanded international attention and cast doubt on our country's reputation as a safe destination for tourists?

But the problem goes beyond the prosecuting authority.

Where was the forensic evidence that is an indispensable building block in securing murder convictions?

Where was the detective work so essential in adding credence to the state's case? It might have been done but the public was not allowed much sight of it during the trial.

In the Oscar Pistorius case searching questions were asked about the quality of the detective work in the critical few hours after Reeva Steenkamp was shot dead.

Those questions need to be asked again.

South Africa does possess decent sleuths but our detective services are under-skilled, underfunded and overstretched, having to carry caseloads that would make even Sherlock Holmes want to change careers.

Without a formidable, feared corps of detectives there is no chance that we will be able to stem the crime torrent.

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