Pretoria High Court to hear senior cop Shadrack Sibiya's application challenging his suspension

JOHANNESBURG - A legal battle between senior cops Shadrack Sibiya and Fannie Masemola is set to play out in the Pretoria High Court on Tuesday morning.

General Sibiya, who is the deputy commissioner for crime detection, approached the court to challenge his suspension by the national commissioner following explosive allegations by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner, Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.

In his briefing in July, Mkhwanzi claimed that Sibiya interfered in the work of the KZN political killings task team, which was investigating a drug syndicate in Gauteng, an allegation that Sibiya has denied.

Mkhwanzi accused Sibiya of meddling in the work of the political killing task team by issuing letters to disband it, halting Crime Intelligence appointments and withdrawing case dockets.

These are the allegations that prompted his suspension by National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola.

Initially, Sibiya was happy to stay home pending the outcome of the commission of inquiry into Mkhwanazi’s allegations, but he has now made a U-turn, claiming the national commissioner does not have the power to suspend him, and that the decision was taken for ulterior purposes and in bad faith.

Now, just days before the police commission of inquiry, the top cops are set to battle it out on Tuesday in the Pretoria High Court, where the application is set to be heard.