Johannesburg - Former KwaZulu Natal Hawks boss Johan Booysen will resume his testimony at the Zondo commission on Thursday morning.
This is Booysen’s second day on the stand following Wednesday’s appearance where he detailed how he was pressured by former KZN provincial police commissioner Mmamonnye Ngobeni to stop an investigation linked to controversial Durban businessman Thoshan Panday.
Booysen’s team had in 2010 begun investigating Panday and his group of companies in a possible corruption scandal in the KZN Saps procurement of accommodation for Saps officials for the 2010 Soccer World Cup.
Panday had alleged booked the accommodation through his company and had inflated the prices and benefited with a profit of R60 million. Booysen said Saps had also used Panday’s company for procuring various other items.
He said while his team investigated the matter, he received a phone call from Ngobeni who pressured him to close the investigation. He said he agreed and pulled his team off the case. Booysen said the investigation was later resumed after he got approval from former Hawks head Anwar Dramat.
He also detailed how he was “ambushed”’ into a meeting with Panday which appeared to have been organized by Ngobeni. Panday seemed in charge of the meeting and he and his lawyer confronted Booysen and questioned the legality of the Hawks investigation.
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He said it was later established that Panday and his lawyer had been tampering with witnesses.
Booysen said his investigators informed during the progress of the investigation that Ngobeni had held a birthday party for her husband, Lucas Ngubeni who was also a Saps official, and the party was funded by Panday at a cost of R30 000.
This was while Ngobeni had been pressuring Booysen to ensure that the investigation into Panday had been halted.
Booysen also revealed how Edward Zuma, former president Jacob Zuma’s son, had an interest in Panday’s case. Edward had asked Booysen to unfreeze the R15 million that Saps owed Panday for services rendered.
Booysen said he made it clear to Edward that he would not intervene as this would implicate him in a corrupt act.
The General said he had visited Zuma senior at his Nkandla homestead, accompanied by a friend, to try and persuade the former president to intervene and warn his son about his business dealings with Panday.
The inquiry resumes at 10 am.