(Photo: Janice du Plessis/Maroela Media)
Two former police officers failed on Friday with their applications for leave to appeal in the High Court in Johannesburg.
Raesibe Melda Ndukula and Faith Makhosazane Mtambo were each found guilty on 1 December 2020 on charges of possession of cocaine, theft and perverting the course of justice and were jailed for 13 years.
These two former police officers who were stationed at the OR Tambo International Airport at the time of the offenses pleaded not guilty to all charges against them.
In March 2013, a flight attendant, identified as Tshabalala, was on a route between South Africa and São Paulo in Brazil. When the flight returned to South Africa, she was arrested on arrival after customs officers from the South African Revenue Service found drugs in her possession.
The confiscated drugs were then handed over to Ndukula and Mtambo in their capacity as police officers. Instead of properly securing the drugs as evidence, they illegally removed and stole a portion of the cocaine.
According to Magaboke Mohlatlole, spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in Johannesburg, the state relied heavily on Tshabalala’s testimony, which was corroborated by circumstantial evidence, including photographic inconsistencies, missing quantities of the confiscated drugs and irregularities in the handling of evidence.
Mohlatlole says Tshabalala proved that the accused tampered with the confiscated cocaine and stole it.
During sentencing in the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court, Adv. Jacob Serepo, Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions in Gauteng, emphasizes the seriousness of drug-related offences, especially within high-risk environments such as international airports.
“In rejecting the appeal, the High Court found that the state could prove beyond reasonable doubt that the two officers were involved in the crime, although there was only one witness. The court found that the circumstantial evidence strongly supported the convictions,” says Mohlatlole.
The court also ordered that the sentence imposed was appropriate, given the seriousness of the offenses and the abuse of police authority.
Mohlatlole says the NPA welcomes the verdict and believes it is confirmation that abuse of a public office, especially in relation to drug-related crimes, will not be tolerated.
“The decision highlights the NPA’s commitment to maintaining the rule of law and ensuring accountability, including in law enforcement agencies.”