The Madlanga Commission says it will obtain a statement from businessman Serge Cabonge after recordings attributed to him were played at the bail hearing of former deputy national police commissioner Shadrack Sibiya.

Commission spokesperson Jeremy Michaels said the commission "will engage with Mr Cabonge and obtain his statement as part of its broad investigation." The allegations in the recording have not been tested in court, and no response from Cabonge has been reported. Sibiya is presumed innocent.

What the commission said

Michaels said the commission has noted the voice recordings attributed to Cabonge, which were played at the bail hearing at the Randburg Magistrate's Court. He said Cabonge has been mentioned at earlier hearings, and that the commission would make no further comment at this stage.

The commission will take the statement as part of its wider investigation into police corruption, including Cabonge's reported reference to the commission in the recording.

What the recordings are said to contain

A recording of about 25 minutes was played, capturing a call between Cabonge and the father of a teenage girl whom Sibiya is accused of sexually grooming. The father is not named, to protect the child. Detective-Sergeant Nokukhanya Ndlovu, the investigating officer in Sibiya's case, told the court the father confirmed the voice was his and the recording was authentic, according to one report.

In the call, Cabonge allegedly refers to a person who sits at the commission and says he helped have an unrelated criminal case withdrawn within about a week. The recording does not name that person, and none of these claims has been tested or responded to.

Cabonge also denies in the call being a go-between for Sibiya and businessman Vusimuzi "Cat" Matlala. "Me, Cat, and Sibiya never did anything," he says, according to coverage of the hearing.

Sibiya's lawyer, Estelle Killian SC, questioned why the recording was played, since Sibiya was not the subject of the conversation. The defence later said it no longer wished to introduce it and had made it available to the state.

Background

Sibiya resigned as deputy national police commissioner as his disciplinary hearing began. Police said his departure would be treated as a "dishonourable discharge." The state opposes bail on allegations that include the sexual grooming of a minor, and he denies the grooming and organised-crime allegations. Bail proceedings continue.

Cabonge has been mentioned at the commission before, which is investigating police corruption and alleged links between police officers and organised crime.

What we do not yet know

  • When Cabonge will give his statement, and whether he will respond to the recording.
  • Who the person mentioned in the recording is, and whether the claims are true.
  • How the recording reached the court, including the circumstances of an accompanying note that police are investigating.
  • When Sibiya's bail proceedings resume.