Vital condition

08 February 2008 - 02:00
By unknown

As any country with an enviable anti-crime strategy will attest, an integral part of the police crime-fighting plan is undoubtedly a witness protection programme with an impeccable integrity.

As any country with an enviable anti-crime strategy will attest, an integral part of the police crime-fighting plan is undoubtedly a witness protection programme with an impeccable integrity.

Not only is it crucial that the custodians of such a programme protect its credibility, but they must also ensure it is foolproof and beyond reproach.

Without such guarantees no witnesses will sacrifice their freedom and identities to go into a witness protection programme fraught with security breaches.

Putting the programme under the spotlight is the saga of a key witness who went missing - jeopardising a case relating to the theft of R65 million from an Ekurhuleni police station in 2006.