Sigh of relief for Mdluli

Suspended police spy boss Richard Mdluli is off the hook for murder charges — at least for now.

The Johannesburg deputy director of public prosecution, advocate Andrew Chauke, provisionally withdrew charges against him on Wednesday for his alleged  role in Oupa Ramogibe’s killing.

National Prosecuting Authority spokesman Mthunzi Mhaga yesterday confirmed that the charges against Mdluli and his  three co-accused, Colonel Nkosana “Killer” Ximba, court orderly Warrant-

Officer Samuel Dlomo and Colonel Mthunzi-Omhle Mtunzi  had been provisionally withdrawn.

The four were facing charges of murder, kidnapping, conspiracy to  murder,  assault, defeating or obstructing the ends of justice, corruption and attempted  murder  relating to Ramogibe’s 1999 killing.

Mhaga said Chauke’s decision to provisionally withdraw the charges follows a  representation Mdluli’s lawyer made to the prosecuting authority.

“We received representations from his lawyers and with the issues they raised, the Directorate of Public Prosecution felt that these issues can best be dealt with in a formal inquest.”

He said a magistrate would now formally order the inquest, after which the NPA would decide  whether to continue with the prosecution.

Mdluli wrote to Chauke in December describing the charges against him as “baseless”.

He said the state’s case was based on statements of witnesses who were intimidated and harassed into implicating him.

Top management at the SAPS had known about the Ramogibe matter long before it made headlines, but had kept quiet. They spoke out only once they found out about Mdluli’s appointment, he claimed.

“It is more likely than not that among the so-called witnesses there are some who have given statements who are so intimidated that they are afraid or scared to come out in the open and say so. They may not have the guts to come forward and report the abuses by police investigators in the case because they are hamstrung by fear,” Mdluli said in his letter.

Officers close to the case said that it now raised further safety concerns for several people who are in witness protection.

“Some of those people have been in witness protection for over a year. This is very weird,” said a police officer.

Mdluli was  arrested in March last year, 12 years after Ramogibe was murdered.

The two were allegedly involved in a love triangle with  Tshidi Buthelezi, with whom Mdluli has a child.