Riot Hlatshwayo

Riot Hlatshwayo

Senior Superintendent Botsotso Mokangwe, a member of the organised crime unit, has been removed from his post after claims that he failed to execute a warrant of arrest against embattled Bushbuckridge executive mayor Milton Morema last month.

Mpumalanga Police Commissioner Afrika Khumalo's spokesman, Superintendent Sibongile Nkosi, confirmed that Mokangwe has been removed from the unit for reasons related to his failure to rearrest Morema and two others.

"I can confirm that the senior superintendent has been removed and placed with the Delmas police station's detective section but I'm not at liberty to give further details," Nkosi said.

Sowetan started making enquiries about the matter after information surfaced that Mokangwe had received a letter from police headquarters asking him to furnish his employers with reasons why he should not be suspended.

Nkosi said she did not know anything about such a letter.

Morema, Lakios Mosoma and Erasmus Makhubele were supposed to have been rearrested on charges of murder and appearing before the Polokwane regional court in Limpopo on July 17.

Mokangwe allegedly called Mpho Mashiloane, the lawyer of the three men, and asked him to make sure they appeared in court in Polokwane instead of arresting them.

But in a surprise turn of events the three fled to the Pretoria high court where they successfully sought an interdict against Safety and Security Minister Charles Nqakula not to arrest them.

The court gave an interim order asking the minister and the director of public prosecutions to give reasons why the order should not be made a permanent one and that those reasons should be given on or before July 31.

The interim order was extended on July 31, while the matter was postponed to February 9 next year.

The three men are accused of murdering Jeffrey Sedibe in 2003 when he allegedly demanded part of his R17000 payment for killing Motion Mashile.

The three had allegedly hired Sedibe to kill Mashile.