Questions about the release of a classified preliminary report by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) into the murder of Anti-Gang Unit commnader Lieutenant-Colonel Charl Kinnear came under the spotlight at the Western Cape High Court on Monday.
Legal representatives for alleged underworld kingpin, Nafiz Modack, claim that the report could exonerate him.
The top secret document made headlines years ago when it was leaked to the media. At the time, it was revealed that the report indicated that police officers could face prosecution for the death of Kinnear. It was subsequently marked as classified and is now inaccessible to the public.
At the time, Ipid spokesperson, Lizzy Suping, said the report remained classified and Ipid would not comment on the details of the report.
Suping said: “Ipid had to classify the report to protect witnesses. It contains sensitive records relating to their personal information that cannot be made public. Furthermore, all those who are implicated cannot be named until they have been charged criminally and departmentally.”
During court proceedings on Monday, former cop Bradley Goldblatt took the stand for cross-examination by defence teams on his evidence linked to the provision of access to the LAD platform to Modack’s co accused, Zane Kilian.
Kilian is accused of pinging Kinnear’s phone excessively using Goldblatt’s online platform. Goldblatt told the court that despite multiple warnings to the Hawks that Kinnear could be in danger, he was told that Kinnear was being protected by the Task Force.
It was not clear if the Task Force had indeed been deployed before Kinnear’s murder in September 2020, but Goldblatt admitted that he was interviewed by Ipid while the report was being drafted.
Addressing the court yesterday, Modack’s lawyer, Advocate Bash Sibda, said access to the report would go to the very heart of the mammoth underworld trial and could possibly exonerate Modack.
But state prosecutor, Advocate Greg Wolmarans, dismissed this request as a “fishing expedition”, saying the state was not interested at all and that the focus of those tasked with writing the Ipid report differed from those investigating the criminal case.
Judge Robert Henney agreed with the state, saying Sibda would not get access to the report and deemed the report not relevant to the trial.
“It’s fishing. Finish and klaar. It’s interesting, (but) not relevant,” the judge ruled.
The case continues.
monique.duval@inl.co.za