In a shocking turn of events, a police captain in Pretoria has been suspended following allegations of misappropriating millions of rands designated for travel expenses. The funds were intended to cover the costs associated with the travel of close protection officers, a unit responsible for securing the president, deputy president, ministers, and deputy ministers of South Africa.
The captain, who was employed in the finance section of the South African Police Service (SAPS) Protection Security Services, is accused of utilizing his system access to book substantial amounts of cash. Despite his claims that the money was allocated for the travel expenses of the protectors, the officers never received any of the allocated funds. The cash was reportedly withdrawn in large sums for the captain’s personal use.
A thorough investigation, which took a considerable amount of time, culminated in the opening of a fraud case at the Sunnyside police station in Pretoria. In parallel, SAPS initiated an internal disciplinary process that ultimately led to the captain’s suspension.
National police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe confirmed the incident, stating that the SAPS financial management division identified the issue and took immediate action. “SAPS has strict systems in place to safeguard public money, and we will not tolerate fraud within our ranks, “Mathe emphasized. She also clarified that no protectors associated with the president, deputy president, ministers, or deputy ministers were implicated in the matter.
In response to the allegations, Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola directed the anti — corruption unit to conduct a further investigation into the matter.
Source: allafrica
