Metro police officers implicated in the theft of R14.9m in precious stones made attempts to squash the career-ending case, including infiltrating the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), evidence before the Madlanga commission on Tuesday showed.
Witness K, a Johannesburg metro police department officer whose identity has been withheld, testified that she was part of a scheme in which police officers colluded to steal precious stones under the guise of a lawful seizure operation at a residence in Killarney, Joburg.
The plan involved suspended Ekurhuleni metro police department (EMPD) deputy chief Julius Mkhwanazi, his subordinates – officers Adrian Norman MacKenzie and Kesha Leigh Stols – and civilian Etienne (Andy) van der Walt.
Chats between the witness and Stols showed the officers discussed how they could kill the criminal case, which was investigated by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) assistant director Thulani Magagula.
“We just need to get someone who can make the case go away,” a message from Stols in May 2023 reads.
Witness K responded by saying, “Will get it; don’t stress.”
The message was sent in May 2023, three months after a case of theft was opened against EMPD officers in February 2023 by the owner of the stones.
Witness K told the commission that Mkhwanazi, whom she described as her former lover, was the mastermind of the theft scheme because he needed money.
She said, as his girlfriend, she tried to assist him by buying groceries, contributing to his legal fees and helping pay his children’s school fees. When she could no longer assist him financially because her savings were depleted, Mkhwanazi allegedly asked her to “keep her ear to the ground” and feed him information. That was when the plan to steal the precious stones came in.
Witness K testified that the stones were taken by Stols, MacKenzie and Van der Walt from the owner because he did not have a licence to deal with precious metals. They were sold for R110,000, which was shared by all officers and Van der Walt.
The chats also showed Stols expected Witness K to talk to Magagula and influence him to make the case go away.
Witness K told the commission she never spoke to Magagula but merely agreed to Stols that she would do so. She also told Stols she “will sort this out soon”.
“I wanted [a] Mr Jango to bring back the stones so we can book them into the SAP 13 so that we can have the SAP number for Mr Magagula,” she said, explaining what she meant by sorting out the matter.
She said her plan was to get the stones sold to a Jango Simon, whom she identified as an informer, and book them in a police exhibits register to make the theft case fall flat.
However, commissioner Sesi Baloyi quizzed how Witness K would have made attempts to register the sold stones in a police exhibit file months after they were stolen.
Baloyi put it to Witness K that the move was yet another unlawful act to corrupt a police officer at a police station to falsify the booking of the stones months after they were stolen.
Baloyi also said the chats also suggested the witness was in talks with Magagula or someone who had access to Magagula. Witness K denied that she spoke to Magagula at the time or asked him to kill the case.
The texts also show Stols was scared of Magagula, describing him as “evil” and someone who likes arresting police officers.
“We have tried everything to get him [Magagula] to stop, and he won’t. I am scared,” Stols said.
“This is killing us. I don’t want to sit in jail; who will look after my daughter? So, I will appreciate all the help. Kenz [MacKenzie] is so depressed, he is drinking like crazy, and the other guy, Etienne [van der Walt], is thinking about ending his life; it’s bad.”
Previously testifying at the commission, Magagula said he found some of the stolen stones in MacKenzie’s car during his investigation.
He told the commission the stones were the same as those stolen from the Killarney resident by the police.
Mkhwanazi is expected to return to the commission on Wednesday to answer the damning allegations.
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