Bheki Cele defends SAPS in Parliament while assault case against Paul Mashatile's protectors continues

More than two weeks have passed since the Randburg Magistrates’ Court granted bail to the eight VIP Protection Unit officers from Deputy President Paul Mashatile’s security detail who were caught on camera assaulting motorists along the N1 freeway in Gauteng. However, despite the widely circulated video, critical details of the incident remain sketchy.

Police Minister Bheki Cele, as well as SAPS and Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) leaders, appeared before Parliament’s portfolio committee on police on Wednesday, 16 August, to answer questions about the incident.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HUE-HccCzE

Cele emphasised that the case was before court and said the judicial process “will tell us what happened on that day”.

Both SAPS and Ipid provided updates on the case’s progress and said investigations were at an “advanced stage” and were nearing completion.

SAPS divisional commissioner for visible policing and operations, Lieutenant-General Michael Mohlala, said SAPS had made its internal investigations a priority to expedite the resolution of the matter. SAPS has suspended the eight officers involved on full pay, according to its disciplinary regulations.

Ipid’s acting executive director, Tiiso Makoloane, said the police watchdog was ready to provide any necessary information to the court in the ongoing case.

Read more in Daily Maverick: Magistrate blasts State’s ‘weak’ case, grants bail to Mashatile’s VIP Protection Unit officers

“Currently the matter is out of our hands … We are just messengers of the court. If there is any outstanding information that they want we will continue to give them that information,” Makoloane said.

During the briefing, Members of Parliament raised pertinent questions for Cele, police managers and Ipid about their investigations. 

Key questions related to whether Mashatile was present in the convoy during the incident, the reasoning behind the officers’ alleged assault on the motorists, the delay in the officers’ arrests, the availability of psychological and anger management services for SAPS members and the existence of a culture of impunity within the police force.

Read more in Daily Maverick: ‘Problem officers’ in Mashatile’s VIP protection unit likely to get away with slap on wrist, say experts

In response, Cele refrained from disclosing specific details about the case, claiming the matter was sub judice.

However, he confirmed that Mashatile was part of the convoy when the alleged assault occurred.

Cele clarified: “The Deputy President was in the convoy, but not at the crime scene where two of his cars pulled off to deal with that matter while five proceeded to their destination.”

National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola said that even if Mashatile was not at the scene, he was technically still in the convoy. “A convoy remains a convoy and it moves as a convoy, whether the principal is present or not. A convoy remains and moves the same because if there is a change in movement, then you will be [spoiling] the security element by indicating whether the principal is there or not.”

Following the alleged assault, there was confusion over whether Mashatile was in the convoy or at the scene.

The Deputy President’s spokesperson Vukani Mde had told Daily Maverick Mashatile “was not in the cars involved in that incident. That is to say, he was not at the scene of the alleged crime”.

Cele denied there was a culture of impunity within the police service, adding that while many officers were “doing an absolutely good job”, others were angry and suffered from the same social problems gripping communities across the country.

“There are problems within the organisation where the members go wayward like all other organisations where they go wayward,” the minister said.

“We are enhancing the structures that must help the police with their welfare and mental health by getting more psychologists and social workers in the organisation.”

The alleged assault occurred on 2 July, but the eight officers involved were charged only on 23 July following widespread public outrage. Addressing concerns about the delayed arrests, Ipid’s chief investigator Osborne Khanyi explained the necessity of conducting a comprehensive investigation rather than acting solely on the leaked video.

“You can’t take a decision based on what you see at face value. You need to go deeper and do your investigation, which involves confirming and visiting the crime scene, interviewing witnesses, supporting the allegation of assault through medical reports, getting statements from medical practitioners on the injuries ... and so on. 

“If we acted based on the video that was circulating and took the suspects to court, the court would have struck the matter off the roll and that would be a travesty of justice. It became important to gather information, which is a process,” Khanyi said.

The Randburg Magistrates’ Court has postponed the case to 27 September to allow for further investigations. When she granted the eight officers bail, Magistrate Hlengiwe Mkhabisi said the state’s case was “weak and frail” and “was put on the court roll prematurely”.

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As the legal process unfolds, the incident continues to put a spotlight on the conduct of VIP Protection Unit officers and the broader issue of accountability within law enforcement. DM