Top cop hands himself in to Hawks

Suspended Crime Intelligence chief Richard Mdluli

Suspended Crime Intelligence chief Richard Mdluli

Published Sep 22, 2011

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Suspended Crime Intelligence head Richard Mdluli handed himself over to the Hawks on Wednesday following fresh allegations of fraud and corruption against him.

Mdluli – a lieutenant-general in the SAPS – was suspended earlier this year after being charged with murder, a count unrelated to his current problem.

 

The Star understands Mdluli handed himself over to the Hawks following the elite police unit’s consolidation of misappropriation of witness protection funds and false police claims charges against him.

Police investigators reportedly discovered that Mdluli allegedly used money from the fund to pay salaries and to purchase houses, cars for girlfriends and their relatives, as well as his own relatives, who had been registered as covert intelligence operatives.

In one case, investigators found that a Cape Town woman, whom they reportedly confirmed as his girlfriend, was registered as an operative and paid at least R18 000 a month. The girlfriend’s cousin and brother were also “employed” by crime intelligence and paid R8 000 a month.

“She lives in a house and drives a BMW bought by SAPS funds. These people were paid and lived off the state for doing nothing,” one of our sources told The Star.

The Star understands that investigators have found a similar situation in Roodepoort on the West Rand, where a woman with alleged links to Mdluli lives in a house meant for people under the witness protection programme.

Sources told The Star that Mdluli had the power as head of crime intelligence to instruct subordinates to purchase moveable and immovable property to meet operational requirements.

Hawks spokesman McIntosh Polela was unable to give finer details pertaining to the fresh allegations against Mdluli, confirming only that the man had appeared in the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in Pretoria on fraud and corruption charges.

Mdluli was not asked to plead.

“I can only confirm that he was arrested and released on warning,” Polela said last night.

Mdluli’s lawyer, Ike Motloung, declined to comment on the latest charges against his client.

 

Mdluli, due back in court on December 14, did not answer calls to his cellphones on Wednesday night.

 

The murder charge against Mdluli relates to the attempted and subsequent murder of Oupa Ramogibe in 1999.

Other alleged offences, such as intimidation and conspiracy to murder, were allegedly committed in 1998. - The Star

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