Hawks' Lebeya calls for dedicated prosecution team from NPA to help with state capture cases
Several cases into state capture are being prioritised by the Hawks following recommendations made by the Zondo Commission.
- Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks)
- National Prosecuting Authority (NPA)
- State capture
Hawks head, Godfrey Lebeya, appeared before Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) in Cape Town on 20 November 2024. Picture: Phando Jikelo/Parliament
JOHANNESBURG - State capture cases are being slowed down by the fact that there's no dedicated prosecution team from the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to assist the Hawks in handling the matters.
Several cases into state capture are being prioritised by the Hawks following recommendations made by the Zondo Commission.
Outgoing Hawks head, Godfrey Lebeya, is set to end his seven-year long term in May.
Despite his departure, he believes the state capture cases are in capable hands.
The Hawks require assistance from the NPA in fast-tracking high-profile cases into state capture.
Lebeya emphasised the need for a dedicated prosecution team within the NPA.
"We have got the serious corruption investigation unit within the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI). We don’t have the dedicated prosecutors to deal with these cases and as a result, we take these cases to be dealt with the specialised prosecutors that deal with commercial cases, so as a result, they get overloaded and the process of decision-making is slowed down."
Lebeya said that even though he was set to leave, he fully supported the teams currently working on state capture cases within the Hawks.