Cop arrested after hidden
evidence found
2014-11-25 11:59
Johannesburg - A Sandton police constable has
been arrested after crime scene reports and evidence was found hidden in his
room, police said on Tuesday.
A constable from the Local Criminal Records
Centre in Sandton was arrested along with a civilian employee from the Linden
police station, said Lieutenant General Solomon Makgale.
Makgale said the constable had been working
as a crime scene expert and had attended crime scenes since January. However,
he failed to register the results into the evidence register and process the
reports.
"When it was time for those exhibits to
be used as evidence in court he was unable to. This led a team of investigators
from the national investigation unit to the constable's room in the police
barracks," said Makgale.
"His room was searched and exhibits and
crime scene reports, which were not processed and never entered into any of the
relevant registers, were found there."
The team also found two firearms which they later discovered were
supposed to have been stored as exhibits at the Linden police station.
The police could not give a proper explanation why he was in possession
of the firearms. The investigation team also found several R1, R5 and 9mm
bullets in his safe.
The two were arrested in September and have
already appeared in court. Police only released the information on Tuesday.
Makgale said the constable was out on bail
and the civilian out on warning.
They were due to appear in the Wynberg
Magistrate's Court on 2 December.
- SAPA
