Pretoria - The former head of Police Crime Intelligence Richard Mdluli has been released on parole on Tuesday.
The Department of Correctional Services confirmed in a statement that Mdluli has been placed on parole, “effective from July 5, 2022.”
Mdluli was sentenced to five years imprisonment for kidnapping, assault, and intimidation, on September 29, 2020.
“He qualified to be considered for parole placement after serving a one third of his sentence, as he falls under the Phaahla Judgment regime (crimes committed before October 1, 2004).
“It is critical to highlight that the crimes he was found guilty of were committed on October 23, 1998,” said the Department of Correctional Services spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo.
Nxumalo added that the decision was taken by the Correctional Supervision and Parole Board after assessing Mdluli’s profile and other material submitted for the purposes of parole consideration.
“He will complete the remainder of his sentence in the system of community corrections, whereby he is expected to comply with specific set of conditions and will be subjected to supervision until his sentence expires,” said Nxumalo.
Mdluli’s charges emanate from the assault and kidnapping of Oupa Ramogibe, in 1998.
Ramogibe used to date Mdluli’s lover Tshidi Buthelezi.
Ramogibe was shot in 1999, and no one was ever convicted of his murder. Mdluli has been accused of sabotaging the investigation. Buthelezi also died in 2003, after an illness.
Mdluli is also facing charges of corruption, fraud and theft.
His two co-accused are a former SAPS supply chain manager Heine Barnard, as well as former chief financial officer Solomon Lazarus.
The charges against them stem from the time that they were employed by the state – between 2008 and 2012 – and were at the helm of the police crime intelligence services.
All three accused face charges related to the alleged abuse of the police secret slush fund. The allegations include the payment for private trips to China and Singapore, the private use of witness protection houses, and the leasing of Mdluli’s private residence to the state in order to pay his bond.
The matter is still in court.
IOL