Flynn criticises Hawks' cocaine evidence blunder at Madlanga Commission
Major-General Hendrick Flynn's testimony at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry criticises Hawks' handling of cocaine evidence in Port Shepstone in 2021.
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The head of the KwaZulu-Natal Hawks, Major-General Lesetja Senona, should not have had the key to the "strong room" in Port Shepstone, where 541kg of cocaine bricks valued at R200 million disappeared during a burglary in June 2021.
During his testimony at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry on Tuesday, Major-General Hendrick Flynn, Component Head for Serious Organised Crime at the SAPS Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks), stated that after seizing the drugs from the Durban depot, they were booked into the SAP13 system at Isipengo police station.
However, the drugs were subsequently booked out due to concerns about insufficient storage space at the facility.
Brigadier Campbell Nyuswa instructed that they be transported to Port Shepstone for storage after consulting with Senona.
He told the commission that Senona was present when the drugs were stored at the Port Shepstone warehouse referred to as a strong room.
He said a proper audit needed to be conducted for the exhibits at the storage facility.
When asked if it was correct for Senona to take possession of the keys given that it was an operational matter, Flynn said that in practice, the SAPS custodian maintains command and control over a SAP13 facility, not the provincial head.
He testified that in instances where the exhibit was left at Isipengo after being booked in, the station commander would have been responsible, and the SAP13 clerk would have ensured it was kept under lock and key.
He said that the moment the Hawks booked the exhibit in and immediately booked it out, they assumed responsibility for it.
The commission heard that Senona gave the keys but did not accompany the individuals to ensure they performed their duties correctly.
Flynn criticised the request for samples at that stage, saying they should have been managed at the crime scene.
He told the commission that if Senona had proper control of the key he should have opened that safe himself and not provided the key to anyone under his command to enter that facility because he would "never be able to account for what transpired there in his absence".
Senona maintained that he took sufficient steps to secure the cocaine, saying he issued an instruction to monitor the facility.
However, conflicting accounts from police officers’ affidavits regarding an instruction to patrol the area showed that one officer expressed unhappiness that the drugs were taken to storage despite the location not being safe.