A 31-year-old suspect is expected to appear in the Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court today following his arrest in a joint operation by the Hawks’ National Serious Corruption Investigation and the Special Investigative Unit (SIU) in the province.
The suspect was arrested after he allegedly offered and handed over R50 000 to the complainant in order to have a case relating to personal protective equipment against his sister disappear.
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The case in question is against an official working for the Department of Public Works in Mpumalanga. The spokesperson for the Hawks, Col Katlego Mogale, said, “The complainant reported that the individual had contacted her and requested to meet. They met and the suspect requested the SIU official to make the case disappear. Upon finalising the amount, the suspect went to collect the money. The suspect later returned and upon handing over the gratification, he was arrested.”
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The national head of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, Lt Gen Godfrey Lebeya, commended the team members of the SIU and the Hawks for always working together to uphold and protect the Constitution and the laws of the republic. “Those who try to corrupt our members will learn the hard way that we have adopted a zero-tolerance approach to corruption,” said Lebeya.
