A retired senior officer of the police says he is not surprised that the public is “losing faith in the police”, as is illustrated by his own experience of the “poor investigation” of a recent burglary at his house in Southridge, Kimberley.
Dolf Lourens, who retired as a lieutenant-colonel, complained in a letter to provincial police commissioner Lt. Gen. Koliswa Otola about the “unprofessional” way the investigation is being conducted.
Lourens, who was a member of the Hawks, was instrumental in the conviction of five accused in the double murder of Johannes Baaitjie, a DA candidate, and his partner, Jeffrey Shuping Nouse, in Daniëlskuil in 2016. When he received the order at the time, he immediately left for Postmasburg and Groenwater (where the bodies had been found) to find his first clues, soon returned to Kimberley for a warrant to obtain mobile phone records from the service provider, and that night returned to Daniëlskuil to arrest his first suspect.
The accused were all found guilty of murder by Judge President Pule Tlaletsi in 2020. In his ruling, the judge found Lourens to be an experienced and seasoned detective whose thorough and highly regarded investigation, which included a wealth of mobile phone evidence, made him a credible witness and expert.
“Unyielding under cross-examination,” the judge found.
Lourens claims the burglary occurred at his house last Sunday at around 04:00. He discovered the unlocked sliding door to his bar open, and his cigarettes and lighter, some bottles of liquor and his Supersonic music box missing. Towels were strewn near the swimming pool towards the devil’s fork fence. He saw footprints and the missing lighter to the side and in front of the house. He took photos of the crime scene and put the lighter in a plastic bag.
On his CCTV-camera footage he saw a man on his premises, walking away with household items, some wrapped in towels. He did not lay a complaint with the police “due to a lack of confidence in the police”, but did his own investigation with the help of another person and found the suspect in Greenpoint. Lourens identified the suspect as the man in the footage. The man was aggressive, and Lourens left.
“At home I prepared a statement and went to the Transvaal Road charge office, where there was a long queue and only two police members on duty. Later only one person assisted the public. When I asked to see the person in charge, I was told the person was busy with the handing over of the shift.
“Normally the handing over does not happen at 16:00. I went home and called 10111, but after the operator transferred the call, the line went dead, and my subsequent call was not answered.”
He engaged the assistance of other police officer.
“I only got the case number on the Thursday when the forensic team arrived to take fingerprints and DNA swabs. Those police officers were very helpful.
“The investigation officer (IO) has not signed documents yet so that the CCTV footage from my security system can be forensically downloaded before it automatically expires after a certain period. I sent one member a clip of the footage on my own accord, in which one can see the suspect’s clothes and a watch on his wrist, and indicated he must confiscate these items as well as the tekkies (to match the footprints) as it is crucial evidence. One of the members responded hours after my messages and calls.
“I took the IO and his team to the suspect’s house. I pointed out witnesses who will testify they saw the suspect with my property or that he tried to sell it. The members did not take notes, and I am unsure if these crucial witness statements will be taken.”
When the suspect was apprehended by the local neighbourhood and the police, the police called Lourens, and he was put on speakerphone to speak to the suspect. The suspect allegedly admitted the burglary and that he knew of a drill that was stolen on a previous occasion.
“My statement about the telephonic conversation with the suspect has not been taken, which can be a problem in court if the docket is incomplete or misleading. The member must also make a statement confirming that I was talking to the suspect and the confession must be taken by a judge of peace (an officer with a rank of captain or higher, or a magistrate).
“The investigating team did not contact me to identify the drill in person as my property, or send a picture of it. It seems there is a dispute about the exact colour of the drill between me and the police.
“I am unsure what the docket contains. It should at least contain my first statement about what happened and a second of how I pointed out the evidence, statements from witnesses, the signed confession and a police member’s statement, and the footage.
“I am disappointed in how this investigation is being conducted. The crime rate in Kimberley is high and criminals are aware of the police’s weak points. ”
Lourens claims the suspect had been charged with seven cases of housebreakings in October 2023, but it was struck from the court roll.
“I believe it is due to poor investigation. The police fail the public in terms of their obligation responsibility in terms of the Police Act.”
Offers made by him previously of providing training to investigators were dismissed by police management, he says.
Col Cherelle Ehlers, police spokesperson, said the suspect (28) was expected to appear in court on 12 December.
“We arrested the man on 9 December at approximately 07:30 in Greenpoint in connection with an alleged house breaking and theft incident that occurred on 3 December.
“The allegations of poor service delivery by the SAPS have been referred to the Provincial Nodal Point for Service Delivery Complaints. The matter will be investigated, and feedback will be provided to the complainant.
“The SAPS urges the community not to take matters into their own hands, but to report crime incidents to the police for investigation.”
