Mdluli 'broke law' by promoting sidekicks

Embattled police spy boss Richard Mdluli promoted two of his murder co-accused despite their having criminal records and facing serious charges.

In a pattern of questionable promotions, Mdluli allegedly not only defied normal police procedures by authorising the promotion of Nkosana "Killer" Ximba from constable to colonel - a seven-rank jump in one day - he also gave the green light for a convicted thief to be elevated to superintendent.

An affidavit compiled by Colonel Kobus Roelofse - the chief investigator at an inquest into the 13-year-old murder case of Oupa Ramogibe for which Mdluli, Ximba, Samuel Dhlomo and Mtunzi-Omhle Mtunzi were charged last year - sketches a picture of how the four top policemen created a tight network around themselves, ensuring that they looked after each other.

The charges have been provisionally withdrawn pending the outcome of the inquest.

Roelofse reveals startling information on how, among others, Mtunzi was convicted of fraud and defeating the ends of justice for selling a minibus, which was handed in as an exhibit at Vosloorus Police Station in 1995. Despite this and another conviction in 1982 for negligent driving, Mdluli signed off Mtunzi's promotion to s uperintendent in May 2010.

Ximba's promotion was approved despite a string of pending and finalised cases, including the possession of an unlicensed firearm in 2001, a R213000 civil judgment over his failure to comply with tax laws and an investigation by the Independent Complaints Directorate of the torture and intimidation of two people.

At the time of the promotions, Mdluli was either the station commander at Vosloorus Police Station or head of crime intelligence.

Mtunzi's promotion to superintendent (now lieutenant-colonel) was, however, frozen in May 2010 after an investigation into irregular appointments and promotions within crime intelligence.

The Times has established that all the promotions are the subject of a Hawks investigation.

Hawks spokesman McIntosh Polela could not immediately confirm the status of the investigation.

In his affidavit read out in the Boksburg Magistrate's Court on Tuesday, Roelofse revealed extensive details about Ximba's, Dhlomo's and Mtunzi's conduct.

Ximba, who has been referred to within crime intelligence circles as Mdluli's "right-hand man", is being investigated for, among others:

• Being in possession of an unlicensed gun in 2001. A case was opened against him and the docket was allegedly stolen from court. A duplicate docket was opened, but no details of the incident existed as no affidavits were taken to reconstruct the docket. It was then marked as "withdrawn" although there was no entry from a prosecutor as required.

• Ximba, after resigning from the SAPS in 2005, applied for re-enlistment in November 2007, but failed to disclose a previous conviction and an admission of guilt in September 2005 under the Road Traffic Act.

A section of the re-enlistment application requires applicants to disclose civil debt cases, all of which Ximba failed to comply with.

He failed to disclose a November 2007 civil judgment against him for R213132 with BMW Financial Services. It was handed down nine days before he completed his re-enlistment application.

• Ximba had also not filed a tax return for 2006. In his application for vehicle finance at BMW Financial Services, he stated that he earned R27000 a month. At the time of his application in 2006, he said he worked for Welfare Housing for 20 months. He, however, did not declare this to SARS.

Regardless, Ximba was reappointed in December 2007.

He again did not play open cards when he applied for promotion in February 2010.

In another case with the Independent Complaints Directorate, Ximba is alleged to have tortured Vusi Msimango and an unnamed friend at the old JSE building in central Johannesburg in August 2009.

Attempts by the directorate to arrest Ximba were unsuccessful.

Instead, Ximba instructed his colleagues to arrest Msimango.

Ximba was eventually arrested and brought before court, but the case was struck off the roll in March 2010 as witnesses were not at court. The prosecutor, however, acknowledged that he was at fault for not issuing subpoenas on the witnesses.

The case was reinstated only to be withdrawn again in January last year.

Apart from highlighting the criminal past of Mdluli's alleged henchmen, Roelofse also unearthed how Mdluli, Dhlomo, Mtunzi all at some stage "lost" their firearms under "questionable" circumstances.

Roelofse's affidavit forms part of the inquest into Ramogibe's murder in 1999. Ramogibe was married to Mdluli's former lover Tshidi Buthelezi.