Innocent Khuba, the Limpopo head of the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) has admitted that the second Ipid report into the illegal rendition of Zimbabweans that exonerated former head of the Hawks Anwa Dramat and Gauteng boss Shadrack Sibiya was altered.
Khuba, the provincial head of Ipid in Limpopo who was charged for altering the Ipid report, which investigated the controversial illegal rendition of the Zimbabweans, pleaded guilty to the charges. The first report signed by Khuba recommended that Dramat and Sibiya should be criminally charged for their role in the rendition.
However, a few months later, in a second report co-signed by suspended Ipid head Robert McBride, the duo was cleared.
Khuba was charged along with head of Ipid investigations Matthews Sesoko, who is going to appear before the disciplinary inquiry in December.
According to the charge sheet, Khuba was appointed as the lead investigator in the matter relating to the illegal rendition of Zimbabwean nationals which occurred between 2010 and 2011.
Last week, Khuba pleaded guilty to charges of dishonesty and defeating the ends of justice.
The ongoing rendition saga led to the recent dismissal of Sibiya after he was found guilty of playing a part in the illegal rendition of Zimbabweans.
Presiding officer Mxolisi Zondo found that Sibiya, in his capacity as Hawks boss, had failed to prevent the rendition of the Zimbabweans.
Dramat resigned in April.
McBride was suspended by police minister Nathi Nhleko, who accused him of altering the report. He appointed Werksmans law firm to investigate Ipid’s conflicting reports.
An explosive report accused McBride of getting rid of evidence that implicated Dramat and Sibiya.
Khuba and Sesoko were suspended following findings of the report.
In the new development, it has emerged that the Ipid second report was altered. Yesterday, Nhleko’s spokesman, Musa Zondi said Nhleko, had noted the latest development which proved that taking action was the correct thing to do.
According to an internal disciplinary hearing charge sheet against Khuba: “The report was concluded on or about January 2014 and you submitted a final investigation report to the NPA. You were accompanied by, among others, Sesoko, head of investigations at Ipid, who provided legal assistance to you and your team during the investigation. In submitting your 2014 January report to the NPA, you met with Advocate Anthony Mosing and handed a final report to him for the NPA to take a decision to prosecute.”
The charge sheet points out that notwithstanding that Khuba had submitted the final report to the NPA, which was subsequently referred to South Gauteng High Court Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Andrew Chauke, he had approached the “DPP South Gauteng’s office and collected the docket and the report”.
The charge sheet states that Khuba, Sesoko and McBride altered the report which had been handed over to the NPA,and deleted information incriminating Dramat and Sibiya in order to reach a conclusion that they had been exonerated by Ipid.
“By altering the report of January 2014, you and Sesoko have made yourselves guilty of dishonesty and defeating the ends of justice.”
The chairperson of the internal disciplinary hearing, Advocate Patrick Ngutshana, imposed a “sanction of a final written warning valid for six months”.
“Despite the seriousness of the offence, the employer is satisfied that Mr Khuba’s openness about the offence, the fact that he did not waste the employer’s time by engaging in a protracted disciplinary enquiry, and his remorse to be a sufficient mitigation against a sanction of dismissal which ordinarily would have been appropriate,” wrote Ngutshana.
Khuba’s suspension was lifted and he reports for duty on Monday.
Sunday Independent