• A police officer in Durban was arrested for allegedly soliciting R200 from a drug dealer.
• This happened while the provincial police commissioner was accompanying officers in a crime-fighting operation in Umbilo.
• Two men were arrested for drug possession.

A Durban police officer was arrested on Saturday night for allegedly soliciting money from a drug dealer, KwaZulu-Natal police have said.

The sergeant’s arrest happened while provincial police commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi was accompanying officers on an operation to stabilise levels of crime in the Umbilo area.

“Whilst the team was busy with their operations on Noble Road in Umbilo, they noticed something suspicious going on in between occupants in a police vehicle from Durban Central and a civilian male outside a block of flats on Noble Road in Umbilo,” said Lieutenant Colonel Nqobile Gwala.

“The team continued with their observation on the said activity. An unknown male was seen leaning through the window into  the front passenger seat of the police vehicle, handing something over to the passenger.”

She said the team then rushed towards the vehicle. When the 38-year-old sergeant in the passenger seat saw them coming he allegedly threw something out of the window.

He was confronted and placed under arrest for corruption and defeating the ends of justice.

Gwala said R200 was retrieved from the drain.

“The man who handed the money to the police was subsequently caught with drugs. The civilian was ordered to take the operational team to his apartment where they found a second man. The flat was searched and police found pieces of cocaine and R7 000 cash suspected to be the proceeds of crime.”

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She said two men, both 52, were arrested for possession of drugs.

All three were expected to appear in the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Monday.

“We often see videos or pictures or receive information of police officers engaging in such criminal activities, and we are unfortunately almost always never able to prove that such police officers are actually engaged in criminal activities”, said Mkhwanazi.

“I accompanied those hard-working members last night as a show of support and to boost the morale of our hard-working members throughout the province, as well as the country, and these arrests last night, especially that of the police officer, is a giant leap for those hard-working police officers to rid our ranks of corrupt elements.”

Gwala said it was very unlikely that the other two constables in the company of the arrested sergeant would go unpunished.

“They are likely to answer for their actions or omissions within SAPS departmental processes.”