‘Even Jesus was tempted,’ says Sergeant Moatshe after refusing R150K bribe from robbers

When SA Police Service Sergeant, Thabo Moatshe, “accepted” a R150,000 bribe from three robbers in 2015, it never occurred to them that they were not only dealing with an upright officer, but also staunch man of God.

Their move instead blew up on their faces when the married father of three from Gauteng leading the investigation into their armed robbery case set up a sting operation for the trio and compounded their predicament.

“I just thought to myself that they didn’t know who they were dealing with. When the devil tried to tempt or corrupt Jesus after 40 days and 40 nights of fasting, He replied to the devil and said: ‘it is written’. I also replied to corruption by saying ‘it is written in our law that corruption is a punishable offence’. I have been offered bribes several times and those people are now in jail as we speak,” the officer, armed with national diplomas in Policing and Theology, told The Citizen.

It all started when a group of armed men stormed into a Telkom store at Irene Shopping Mall in Pretoria on 18 October 2014 and robbed the store of R100,000 worth of cell phones.

The investigation led police to Yeoville in Johannesburg where the suspects were arrested, with Moatshe successfully opposing bail for Khangelani Tshalibe, Collin Moyo and Kumbulani Keizer Dube, pending the trial that began on 21 June 2015.

The charges brought against the trio were robbery with aggravating circumstances; contravention of the Firearm Control Act; possession of illegal firearm; possession of ammunition; possession of suspected stolen property; corruption; money laundering; and defeating the administration of justice.

In January 2015, while in custody at Kgosi Mampuru correctional centre in Pretoria, the accused contacted Moatshe and offered him the bribe if he could destroy the evidence in their case.

Moatshe immediately activated the Anti Corruption unit and the trio was nabbed for corruption while in the act of “delivering” the R150,000 in cash in a bag at Boulders Mall in Midrand, resulting in further charges of corruption added onto the initial business robbery case.

Thanks to Moatshe’s six years of relentless, diligent and principled work, this week the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court found the trio guilty and will be sentenced later this month.

He said it was when the suspects realised the overwhelming evidence against them that they opted to bribe him.

“It’s all about team work, I wouldn’t have achieved this alone, I thank all my colleagues who assisted in this matter. My witnesses were also very helpful and gave maximum cooperation,” said Moatshe, who joined the SAPS in 2004.

When he is not locking up criminals, he is either in church or at the gym honing his black belt craft in martial arts and kickboxing.

Provincial police commissioner, Lieitenant General Elias Mawela, believes the trio’s arrest disrupted the work of an organised group targeting cell phone stores some years ago, saying this type of crime stabilised since their arrest.

“It is only with this kind of unwavering commitment to investigations and court trials, as well as high discipline and ethical conduct by our members that we can win over the confidence and trust of the communities we serve,” he said.

-siphom@citizen.co.za

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