DPCI took over Babita Deokaran murder case without formal agreement

Minister confirms lack of formal authorisation for Hawks handover

Minister of Police Firoz Cachalia has confirmed there was no formal written agreement or instruction authorising the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI), commonly known as the Hawks, to take over the high-profile murder investigation of whistleblower Babita Deokaran.

Minister of Police Firoz Cachalia has confirmed there was no formal written agreement or instruction authorising the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI), commonly known as the Hawks, to take over the high-profile murder investigation of whistleblower Babita Deokaran.

Portfolio Committee Chairperson demands legal basis

The revelation came in response to pointed questions from Ian Cameron, Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Police, who sought clarity on the legal foundation for the Hawks’ involvement, who approved the transfer, and whether any documented instruction existed.

Verbal deal between senior Gauteng officials

Minister Cachalia disclosed that the decision rested solely on a verbal agreement reached on 26 August 2021 between Brigadier Louw (then Provincial Head of Serious and Violent Crime Investigation in Gauteng) and Major General Kadwa (Provincial Head of the DPCI in Gauteng).

“A verbal agreement was reached between the parties on 26 August 2021. There was no written instruction as the agreement was verbal,” Cachalia stated, adding that transfers of case dockets between the SAPS Detective Service and the DPCI do not always require written documentation.

Hawks’ mandate invoked for high-profile corruption-linked cases

The Minister emphasised that the Hawks are statutorily mandated to handle national priority offences, including corruption, organised crime, and matters of significant public interest.

He explained that the Hawks are frequently approached to assume responsibility for high-profile or publicly sensitive cases, and in this instance, intelligence at the time suggested Deokaran’s assassination was intended to silence officials and witnesses exposing corruption at a Gauteng hospital.

“It was deemed most appropriate by the Gauteng DPCI Provincial Head for the case to be investigated by the DPCI,” Cachalia noted.

Case officially referred to serious organised crime unit

Cachalia confirmed the murder docket was formally referred by SAPS’ Serious and Violent Crime Investigation to the Johannesburg-based Serious Organised Crime Investigation Unit within the DPCI, where the probe continues.

Deokaran’s assassination and lasting national outrage

Babita Deokaran, a senior official in the Gauteng Department of Health, was gunned down outside her home in August 2021, weeks after blowing the whistle on multi-million-rand irregularities in PPE tenders during the COVID-19 crisis.

Her killing triggered widespread public outrage, intensified demands for robust whistle-blower protection, and highlighted ongoing challenges in combating corruption and ensuring accountability in South Africa.

The investigation into her murder remains active and unresolved.