The National Director of Public Prosecutions, Advocate Andy Mothibi, has ordered the immediate withdrawal of all criminal charges against suspended National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola, citing a severe lack of evidence to secure a conviction.
The decision follows an exhaustive review of the case file by a specialized Case Assessment Panel alongside an independent Senior Counsel. According to the prosecuting authority, the evaluation concluded that the state possesses no reasonable prospects of a successful prosecution against the top cop.
General Masemola was facing four counts of violating the Public Finance Management Act. The charges originated from an investigation by the Independent Directorate Against Corruption into a controversial multimillion-rand health and wellness contract. The South African Police Service had awarded the tender to Medicare24, a company associated with provider Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala.
Advocate Mothibi emphasized that pursuing a criminal trial without sufficient evidence, while simultaneously ignoring clear exculpatory facts, fundamentally undermines the mandate of the justice system and fails to serve the public interest.
State prosecutors are now expected to coordinate a formal court appearance where the withdrawal of the charges will be officially recorded on the judicial record.
Advocate Mothibi has confirmed that the complete case file and the assessment panel’s findings will be forwarded to the IDAC Judge. This referral aims to scrutinize the conduct of the original prosecution team and determine how a case with such critical evidentiary gaps was allowed to be enrolled in court, forming part of a broader internal review under the IDAC Reset Programme.