The SAPS is accusing the metro police of searching the wrong home and not correctly completing statements for search warrants.
|||Cape Town - The tension between SAPS and the city’s metro police is escalating.
The SAPS have now accused the metro police of searching the wrong home and not correctly completing statements for search warrants.
But the city said it was “dishonest” of the SAPS to say it was withdrawing from a joint operation because of this single instance.
It questioned why the entire operation could not continue since much of it did not hinge on search warrants.
This week, the Cape Argus reported SAPS decision to withdraw from the operation with the metro police in the Nyanga cluster. It was labelled Operation Sisonke and covered areas including Nyanga, Athlone and Gugulethu. General Jeremy Veary, the head of the Nyanga cluster, withdrew SAPS from the operation in July.
SAPS on Thursday held a press conference about the operation and its “perceived withdrawal”.
General Peter Jacobs, the deputy provincial commissioner for visible policing, explained that the issuing of warrants followed strict regulations under law. Jacobs said skirting any of these could result in the searches being questioned in court.
He said SAPS had been alerted that some of the searches in Operation Sisonke were “not meeting the tests” required by law.
In one instance, the metro police had provided information which lead to officers searching the wrong home.
Jacobs explained that procedures needed to be followed when obtaining warrants. This week, Veary told the Cape Argus that law enforcement officers should approach a magistrate during the day.
After hours, a standby magistrate can issue warrants. If this magistrate is not available, only a commissioned police officer can sign off.
Jacobs said they found that the metro police operations were not adhering to all of these conditions.
However, he said SAPS still had a good working relationship with the city. He added that “by-law enforcement” was key in a crime prevention strategy. Jacobs referred to suspected gangsters altering council-owned homes, adding that the city law enforcement was the first line of defence in such cases.
Hishaam Mohamed, provincial Justice Department head, said all law enforcement officers needed to comply with the laws: “No one should be too enthusiastic to cut corners in law enforcement… [some] feel the laws are tedious, but this is in protection of social liberties.”
JP Smith, mayoral committee member for safety and security, said the operation had been yielding results in some of Cape Town’s most dangerous areas. He said the current situation was an attempt by some police officers to “drive a wedge between SAPS and the metro police”.
Smith said the metro police approached magistrates for warrants, but in some cases would ask SAPS to assist. And the city continued to have good co-operation with most SAPS stations. He said the police’s latest statements were trying to “justify” Veary’s “inexplicable behaviour” by withdrawing from the operation.
bronwynne.jooste@inl.co.za
Cape Argus