Johannesburg - The National Prosecuting Authority says it has a watertight case against suspended crime intelligence boss Richard Mdluli, but a source familiar with the case says the decision is political because they don’t have a winnable case.
On Friday, the NPA announced it had decided to reinstate corruption and fraud charges against Mdluli and that he was due to appear in court on April 1.
An NPA source revealed that “prosecutors say they have a watertight case. The investigation is complete. The matter will be set down for trial soon.”
However, a source close to the investigation disagreed.
“There is nothing new. I know a team of top prosecutors have relooked into the matter since July last year. At least on four occasions, they submitted reports indicating that there were no prospects of a successful prosecution.
“On each occasion, they would be sent back to look for something better… Strictly speaking, it is a political decision. There can be no other reason because there is no evidence.”
Velekhaya Mgobhozi, the prosecutions authority spokesman, said the NPA had placed the Mdluli matter back on the court roll to comply with a Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) court order. “We have a prima facie case,” he added.
The saga has been on the boil since 2011.
Mdluli has been accused of employing relatives and friends as intelligence operatives and misusing police funds to buy luxury cars and go on a trip to China.
He was charged in 2011, but the charges were later withdrawn.
However, lobby group Freedom Under Law (FUL) launched an application challenging the NPA’s decision to withdraw corruption charged against Mdluli.
The high court ruled in favour of the FUL and set aside the NPA’s decision to withdraw the charges of fraud and money laundering.
The SCA judgment upheld a high court ruling against the withdrawal of fraud and corruption charges, ordering that the charges against Mdluli be reinstated.
The charges relate to Mdluli’s time as Crime Intelligence Unit head. The fraud case centres on the alleged purchase of two vehicles for his department and payments from the police slush fund.
The Specialised Commercial Crime Unit’s Lawrence Mrwebi headed the probe.
The court was scathing of the senior prosecutor’s decision to withdraw the charges.
In June last year, Mrwebi penned a report saying there was clearly no evidence against Mdluli.
He added that financial statements and audit reports had not found anything wrong with the slush fund.
The Star