South African prosecutors have withdrawn fraud and corruption charges against police intelligence chief Lt-Gen Dumisani Khumalo and six other police officers.
The charges stemmed from the alleged unlawful appointment of a civilian to a senior position within the police’s Crime Intelligence unit. Khumalo and the other officers were arrested in June 2025 but denied the allegations and were not suspended from duty.
The case was formally withdrawn at a court in Pretoria after the country’s chief prosecutor reviewed the matter last month.
Khumalo welcomed the decision outside the court, saying he was relieved that the truth had finally come out.
The allegations centred on the appointment of Dineo Mokwele to a senior technical support services position within Crime Intelligence. Prosecutors had previously claimed that she was not qualified for the role and described her appointment as a “token appointment”.
However, Mokwele’s qualifications later came under scrutiny at the Madlanga Commission, a major judicial inquiry investigating allegations of corruption and political interference within South Africa’s police and government.
The commission heard that Mokwele was qualified for the position and held about a dozen certificates.
In July, Andrea Johnson, a former senior official in the National Prosecuting Authority’s specialised unit for investigating serious corruption, appeared before the commission. She acknowledged that she had not been aware of Mokwele’s qualifications and apologised for previous comments about her.
The withdrawal of the charges comes as South Africa continues to examine allegations of corruption and organised crime within its law-enforcement agencies.
The Madlanga Commission was established by President Cyril Ramaphosa after a senior police officer made allegations that organised criminal groups had infiltrated parts of the government.
Khumalo has headed South Africa’s Crime Intelligence division since 2022. Before taking the position, he spent more than two decades serving in various police units.
