Pretoria - The probe into the robbery at President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Phala Phala farm is still under investigation, as more people have made statements about the alleged incident to the Hawks.
This was revealed by Hawks head, General Godfrey Lebeya, when questioned by the media about his alleged failure to give details about his elite unit’s investigation into the Phala Phala matter, including any decision on whether criminal charges would be preferred against Ramaphosa.
Lebeya was briefing the media about progress his unit had made since he took office in June 2018.
But his apparent failure to mention the Phala Phala matter caught the attention of the media, and he was questioned for not giving details about it despite (Arthur) Fraser’s public announcement that he had discussed his case with Hawks investigators.
In his reply, Lebeya said: “The Phala Phala matter is still under investigation. The former State Security Agency head is not the only person who has made a statement on it. We have obtained 41 statements. The complaint against the president was part of more than 22 000 cases handled by the Hawks.”
Fraser lodged a criminal complaint against Ramaphosa, alleging the robbery on the farm, in which $4 million in foreign currency, allegedly hidden in the house, was stolen. He also claimed that the president allegedly also participated in the assault of people, including his domestic worker, who were linked to the robbery.
Lebeya said the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation was handling 22 477 cases with more than 500 000 charges, with a monetary value of more than R1.5 trillion.
“These cases involve approximately 23 519 suspects of which 12 360 have already been secured at court and 11 159 pending.”
From the 2018/19 to 2021/22 financial years, the Hawks arrested 12 157 suspects who were brought before the courts. In the same period a total of 4 447 convictions were secured.
Lebeya was adamant no decision had been made on the Phala Phala case yet as his unit was still investigating.
His revelations about Phala Phala came as opposition parties were urging the public protector to urgently release a report on its investigations. Opposition parties, including the EFF, were using the matter to call for a motion of no confidence against Ramaphosa – a move not supported by the DA .
Pretoria News