The late former national police commissioner Jackie Selebi knew nothing about policing but plenty about corruption.
This is according to certified fraud examiner and private investigator Paul O’Sullivan, who said the South African Police Service (SAPS) was “captured” by the criminal underworld during Selebi’s tenure.
O’Sullivan on Tuesday appeared before parliament’s ad-hoc committee investigating allegations of corruption in the criminal justice system. The claims were initially brought to light by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.
In his testimony, O’Sullivan detailed his extensive history with law enforcement, including his years as a volunteer SAPS reservist from 1990 to 2002, where he completed detective training.
In 2001, he was appointed group executive of aviation security at the Airports Company South Africa (Acsa). This role granted him statutory rights to amend rules to bolster security. Additionally, he served as the vice-chairperson of the National Aviation Security Committee (NASC) between 1991 and 1992.
O’Sullivan claimed that Selebi leveraged his dual roles as national police commissioner and a member of the ANC national executive committee (NEC) to influence amendments to the National Key Points Act.
According to O’Sullivan, these changes were designed to ensure that security at national key points fell under direct police control.
He further alleged that Selebi lobbied the National Intelligence Co-ordinating Committee (NICOC) to declare O’Sullivan’s presence at the NASC illegal unless he obtained “top secret” security clearance.
“Selebi knew I could not achieve that level of clearance, as I had previously worked for the British government and held multiple passports,” O’Sullivan said. “This led to the termination of my role at Acsa in April 2003.”
O’Sullivan added that Selebi also terminated his role as a police reservist in an effort to silence him.
Despite his removal from the SAPS and Acsa, O’Sullivan continued to interact with police officials. During this time, he uncovered an allegedly corrupt relationship between Selebi and Glenn Agliotti — a man O’Sullivan had previously arrested in 2001 for smuggling counterfeit clothing.
According to O’Sullivan, the Agliotti case was removed from the airport police and transferred to the SAPS head office.
“I soon connected the dots and investigated,” O’Sullivan testified. “The investigation revealed that the charges against Agliotti had been suddenly dropped as a result of Selebi’s corrupt intervention.”
This discovery prompted him to launch a private investigation into Selebi’s activities, O’Sullivan told the committee.
“Selebi knew nothing about policing, but knew plenty about corruption.” He cited Selebi’s “unlawful and unsuitable senior appointments”, alleging that the former commissioner promoted corrupt officials who should have been prosecuted or removed from the force.
The damage done by Selebi cannot be underestimated, as the effects are still felt today.
— Paul O'Sullivan
O’Sullivan highlighted Selebi’s relationship with former president Thabo Mbeki, alleging that Mbeki attempted to shield Selebi in exchange for political support during the 2007 Polokwane elective conference. He further claimed that Mbeki sought Selebi’s help to arrest and charge Jacob Zuma on corruption counts prior to Zuma’s presidency.
In 2008, Selebi was eventually charged with corruption and defeating the ends of justice for taking bribes from Agliotti in exchange for protection and confidential information. He was convicted in 2010 and sentenced to 15 years in prison.
“The damage done by Selebi cannot be underestimated, as the effects are still felt today,” O’Sullivan added.
O’Sullivan informed the committee that he conducted a “clean-up exercise” within the criminal justice system after Selebi’s downfall. By 2016, he had opened cases against several senior police officials, prosecutors and board directors of state-owned companies.
He asserted that his investigations touched on high-profile figures, including Jacob Zuma, the late former SAA chair Dudu Myeni, former acting national police commissioner Lt-Gen Khomotso Phahlane and other SAPS senior officials.
O’Sullivan then detailed the personal toll of his work, citing unlawful raids on his offices and an instance where he was allegedly kidnapped by corrupt police officials.
The hearing continues, with O’Sullivan expected to respond to specific allegations levelled against him by Mkhwanazi.
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