The judicial commission of inquiry chaired by retired Constitutional Court Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga has heard of a mystery North West businessman, Steven Motsumi.
Image: Oupa Mokoena / Independent Newspapers
Feared alleged businessman Steven Motsumi has been accused of having significant influence over SA Police Service (SAPS) senior officers at the Madlanga Judicial Commission of Inquiry.
At least two top police officers have expressed before the Madlanga Judicial Commission of Inquiry that they were afraid of the North West businessman.
Suspended SAPS Organised Crime Unit head Major-General Richard Shibiri has told the commission that he feared Motsumi, who has mining interests in the North West. Shibiri explained that Motsumi was close to businessman Ze Nxumalo, who he described as a Zulu guy who lives in Sandton and is close to EFF leader Julius Malema.
He noted that Malema is also closely associated with suspended Deputy National Commissioner, Lieutenant-General Shadrack Sibiya.
“I was once in the office of the general (Sibiya), there was a female and a Chinese guy to report a case of vandalism at a mine in the Northern Cape,” Shibiri stated.
He indicated that the Chinese businessman was Nxumalo’s partner in business.
According to Shibiri, he came into contact with Motsumi, a businessman with interests in Reiger Park in Gauteng, for construction and mining in Brits, North West.
KwaZulu-Natal Hawks head Major-General Lesetja Senona has admitted to the commission, chaired by retired Constitutional Court Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga, that he was afraid to mention Motsumi during his testimony earlier this year. Senona refused to name Motsumi and informed the commission that Motsumi is a very dangerous person.
Shibiri was more forthcoming and stated that he engaged with Motsumi because he was a complainant in an extortion case over his chrome mining operations.
One of the commission’s evidence leaders, Lee Segeels-Ncube, stated that Motsumi was the person whose identity Senona had refused to reveal.
The move forced Justice Madlanga to express his grave concern that Shibiri would now be the second top cop to refuse to identify a key person in the commission’s work out of fear.
Nkosi also shared confidential police information with Motsumi regarding chrome theft suspects in Mooinooi, North West, before the accused’s court appearance. Police documents in question stated that authorities were still tracking the potential buyer of the chrome.
“One of the things that Mr Motsumi is always concerned about is when police are implicated in wrongdoing, so his interest is there.
“He doesn’t want when police are implicated in wrongdoing because, according to him, he has the best interests of South Africa and its inheritance. So, when a police official is mentioned in wrongdoing, he gets worried – we discuss it sometimes,” Nkosi said this week.