KZN Hawks boss should have had lie detector test after R200m drugs vanished, commission hears

A senior Hawks official told the Madlanga commission that Maj-Gen Lesetja Senona was supposed to be subjected to a lie detector test after R200m worth of drugs went missing to establish if he had anything to do with their disappearance.

On Wednesday, the Hawks’ component head of serious organised crime, Maj-Gen Hendrik Flynn, gave the commission detailed information on how the drugs that were seized in Isipingo in June 2021 were improperly handled, recorded and moved under a misleading entry before they went missing.

The commission has heard previous testimony that Senona, the suspended KwaZulu-Natal head of the Hawks, had alleged ties with criminal cartels.

The Hawks’ office in Port Shepstone from where the drugs were stolen had no CCTV, and its alarm system was off at the time.

During the conclusion of his evidence, Flynn was asked whether Senona should have been subjected to a polygraph test to establish if he had played any role in the missing drugs.

“The exhibits were never taken for analysis...” — Maj-Gen Hendrik Flynn

“In my opinion, commissioners, indeed, he was supposed to be exposed to the process as he played an active role in the Port Shepstone matter,” Flynn said.

“It is not as if he were just the provincial head sitting at a distance; he was privy to the details.

“He visited the Port Shepstone offices shortly after the seizure and took possession of the key of the room where the drugs were stored.

“That’s active participation; it is not as if he were at a distance and was not related to this matter.

“So, it is my strong opinion that he was supposed to be exposed to process [a lie detector test],” he said.

Flynn told the commission that after the drugs were seized they were temporarily kept at Isipingo police station and later booked out under a misleading category.

“The exhibits were never taken for analysis on that date; it is completely misleading because the exhibits were taken from Isipingo to Port Shepstone and were never submitted for analysis.”

On Friday, the commission will hear further details in camera about the drug bust and how the drugs were stolen from the Hawks’ office.

“The witness testimony is too sensitive to be led in public with due consideration of the commission’s commitment of transparency,” said commission spokesperson Jeremy Michaels.

He said the witness will testify in camera to ensure that they do not compromise the police investigation.

Sowetan