IPID obtains a search warrant for national police commissioner’s home

19 January 2017 - 16:12 By Graeme Hosken
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"The wheels of justice have finally turned."

This was the response of private forensic investigator Paul O'Sullivan on news that the Independent Police Investigative Directorate had obtained a search warrant earlier today to raid acting national police commissioner Lieutenant-General Kgomotso Phahlane's Pretoria home.

The warrant was obtained after a warning statement was taken from Phahlane by IPID investigators this morning.

Phahlane is being investigated for defeating the ends of justice and corruption. The charges stem from when he headed the police's forensics department.

Attempts to reach Phahlane for comment were unsuccessful this morning.

O'Sullivan has been instrumental in helping IPID investigators in their investigation into Phahlane who is believed to have received kickbacks while he headed the forensics department.

He told The Times that he opened the dockets last year while IPID head Robert McBride was on suspension.

"I subsequently opened a further docket of corruption and defeating the ends of justice against the then acting IPID head after I discovered that in March last year he had tipped off Phahlane about the contents of the docket which I had opened."

O'Sullivan said the dockets that he opened against Phahlane related to his [Phahlane's] alleged protection of convicted mobster Radovan Krejcir and former police detective head Vinesh Moonoo.

He said in April‚ two weeks after the IPID acting head tipped off Phahlane‚ he was arrested and dragged off a plane as he was about to depart for the United Kingdom

"The next evening while held in cells at a Pretoria police station‚ I was told by the Gauteng Hawks head‚ Prince Mokotedi that he had insight into the docket which I had opened against Phahlane and Moonoo and that I would soon be charged with espionage‚ terrorism and treason.

"It was made clear to me from that that Mokotedi is part of a broader conspiracy to shut down any corruption investigations aimed at senior government officials."

Late last year‚ McBride‚ O'Sullivan and a crime intelligence Candice Coetzee were suspended for alleged terrorism‚ espionage and treason.

O'Sullivan said with the reappointment of McBride it was clear that the criminal system was starting to work again.

TMG Digital/The Times

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