Murdered detective Charl Kinnear was on the trail of gang leaders

Three days before he was gunned down, top detective Charl Kinnear was quoted in a court judgment naming Ralph Stanfield as the leader of the feared 28s gang.

The judgment led to the conviction of two of the 28s for a murder in Bishop Lavis, Cape Town - just a few streets from where Kinnear was shot on September 18 outside his house, in 28s "territory".

Kinnear and his fellow detectives at the anti-gang unit have been investigating two of the country's alleged underworld figures, Stanfield and Nafiz Modack. The cases involved a network of corruption at the police central firearms registry.

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The charge against Stanfield, expected to be heard in the Khayelitsha regional court on November 20, alleges that he, his wife, Nicole, and other alleged gang members obtained firearms and ammunition from corrupt police contacts at the registry.

Two weeks ago, the Sunday Times reported that Kinnear named high-ranking police officers in an affidavit in a case between Modack and police commissioner Khehla Sitole, detailing a similar modus operandi of fraudulently obtaining nine firearms.

Several officers were arrested in June in connection with that case. Sitole promised more arrests.

The case against Stanfield has wider implications. He and his co-accused face 109 charges, including ones under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act that could lead to a gang trial to rattle the underworld.

The charge sheet alleges that Stanfield and his alleged fellow 28s gang members had distributed weapons and ammunition to hitmen responsible for murders across the country. One of his fellow accused, alleged 28s hitman Godfrey "Chorra" Owies, was gunned down earlier this year.

Sources told the Sunday Times that Owies was related to a man convicted for the attempted murder of another alleged gang boss, Jerome "Donkie" Booysen, at a restaurant in Kuils River in August 2018. Kinnear was investigating the attempted murder.

In 2017, Stanfield was shot in an Audi R8 near Melrose Arch in Johannesburg. He drove himself to a nearby hospital but lost control when he arrived and hit three cars.

In the charge sheet, the state alleges that Stanfield and his fellow accused obtained fraudulent firearm licences through the Olifantsfontein police station in Midrand and through other police stations.

"The accused and others, known and unknown to the state, were members and associates of the 28s gang. Some of the accused are not members of the gang but participated in the conduct of the gang. The 28s gang is a criminal organisation whose members and associates engaged in acts of violence, including murder, attempted murder, assault, theft, possession of stolen goods, possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition, malicious damage to property, witness intimidation and drug trafficking," according to the charge sheet.

Sources said the Stanfield case mirrored the modus operandi allegedly used by Modack to obtain firearms from police stations in Johannesburg. As commander of the anti-gang unit detective team, Kinnear worked closely with detectives investigating the Stanfield case.

Former rugby player Zane Kilian was arrested in Springs, Gauteng, in connection with Kinnear's death. He was charged with murder, conspiracy to commit murder and unlawful interception of communication.

According to the state, he intercepted Kinnear's cellphone calls between March and September 18 - the day the detective was shot. Kilian has appeared three times in the Bishop Lavis magistrate's court. Though his appearance on Friday was for administrative purposes, his lawyer, Eckhard Röseman, handed in documents indicating that Kilian was a registered private investigator.

"What he did, he did legally. He did not commit murder. He did not conspire to commit murder. He did not [contravene] the communication act," said Röseman.

National police commissioner Sitole has appointed a senior officer to find out why Kinnear did not have official police protection. When questioned on this in parliament on Tuesday, Sitole said he had received a preliminary report.

National police spokesperson Brig Vish Naidoo said later in the week: "We are not going to provide details of the security assessment at this stage as it forms part of a bigger process which is under way.

"In the meantime I can confirm that the national commissioner has now been provided a final report, which makes certain recommendations which he is going to act on," said Naidoo.