Paul O'Sullivan testified at the Madlanga Commission.
Image: Timothy Bernard/ ANAStudios
Private investigator Paul O'Sullivan said the recent claims of organised crime infiltrating the SA Police Service (SAPS) criminal justice system merely confirmed a crisis he says has existed for well over a decade.
Testifying Madlanga Commission on Monday, O'Sullivan said the claims raised by KZN Police Commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi did not reveal new information, arguing that criminal networks had already entrenched themselves within law enforcement years before Mkhwanazi's widely publicised briefing.
Giving evidence on his long-running investigations into corruption and organised crime, O'Sullivan said he had first encountered evidence of deep-rooted infiltration while serving as acting police commissioner in 2011.
On July 6, 2025, Mkhwanazi held a media briefing, exposing the alleged corruption in the justice system and police ministry.
Among the claims, were the disbandment of the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT) and political interference.
“Despite General Mkhwanazi's press conference where he purported to blow the whistle on the infiltration of the criminal justice system by organised crime,” O’Sullivan told the commission that the organised crimes were not new.
“Criminals have been able to successfully penetrate the criminal justice system long before 6 July 2025”.
He said the problem stretched back to the tenure of former national police commissioner Jackie Selebi, whom he helped expose, adding that political interference in policing had also been evident for years.
O'Sullivan's testimony focused on the relationship between organised crime and compromised law enforcement officials, echoing evidence he presented earlier this year before Parliament's ad hoc committee.
His appearance forms part of the commission's ongoing efforts to examine allegations of corruption.
O’Sullivan has concluded his testimony at the commission.
IOL Politics