'Manipulative' Breytenbach under fire as hearing opens

According to an assessment of the proceedings in The Times, Breytenbach, a renowned corruption-buster, was suspended as chief prosecutor of the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court after being accused of unethical behaviour. The charges include gross misconduct, improper conduct and abuse of power in her handling of a mining rights dispute between Kumba Iron Ore and Imperial Crown Trading (ICT). She is alleged to have ignored criminal charges laid by ICT and to have colluded with Kumba Iron Ore's lawyers. She is also accused of trying to intimidate an ICT director into being a state witness. The NPA claims she brought the organisation into disrepute by not declaring her income from stabling horses. Breytenbach claims the charges are an attempt to stop her from prosecuting former police spy boss Lieutenant-General Richard Mdluli, whom she was investigating for alleged fraud relating to a secret Crime Intelligence slush fund before charges against him were dropped. Testifying before presiding officer Sandile July, acting head of the NPA's Integrity Management Unit, Hercules Wasserman, said 'Breytenbach and her lawyer raised concerns but never about the Mdluli matter - not before our meetings, not during our meetings and not afterwards.' Full report in The Times

It was revealed that the NPA has laid criminal charges against Breytenbach related to information that was allegedly deleted from her laptop. Wasserman told the hearing an investigator had laid a charge in terms of the NPA Act against Breytenbach at the Pretoria Central Police Station, notes a City Press report. The NPA Act provides for a criminal sanction in cases where there is unauthorised access to or modification of NPA computer material, it adds. Wasserman said the investigation team had 'forensic evidence' that information had been destroyed by the installation of forensic software on the laptop. Wasserman called it 'a deliberate attempt to hamper the investigation', which was illegal. Full City Press report See also a Beeld report

Wasserman described how Breytenbach 'deliberately' tried to sabotage the NPA's investigation of her conduct. He said the unit was asked to investigate Breytenbach following a complaint by Mendelow Jacobs Attorneys on behalf of ICT. According to a report on the News24 site, the NPA alleges Breytenbach acted with bias in favouring Sishen over ICT in her probe. Wasserman told the hearing that his unit had set up a meeting with Breytenbach on 7 February this year to collect her laptop. Her attorney Gerhard Wagenaar attended the meeting, and they agreed that Breytenbach would be allowed to make a mirror copy of her hard drive to protect her rights. Wasserman said the attorney had said he would phone later that day to arrange to hand over the laptop, but did not do so. Wagenaar instead sent the NPA a letter in which he said they would hand over the computer only when certain conditions had been fulfilled. 'The laptop is the property of the NPA and no employee has the right to issue certain ultimatums,' Wasserman said. Breytenbach allegedly wanted more information on the charges against her and was concerned about the privacy of information on the laptop. His unit obtained Breytenbach's laptop only when she was suspended, he said. Full report on the News24 site

E-mails found on the laptop could amount to unethical conduct, Wasserman told the hearing, according to a report on the IoL site. He said his team found a number of e-mails between Breytenbach and Mike Hellens, senior counsel for Kumba. The NPA alleges that Breytenbach acted with bias in favouring Sishen over ICT in her probe and that she had an improper relationship with Hellens. Kumba claimed that ICT, a politically-connected company with shareholders that include President Jacob Zuma's son Duduzane, forged its application for prospecting rights of iron ore at Sishen. The Department of Mineral Resources then laid a charge against Kumba, accusing it of forging ICT's application. Wasserman said the e-mails indicated that Hellens drafted affidavits for Breytenbach, which was particularly concerning, as they related to a criminal matter. Full report on the IoL site

Other charges relate to Breytenbach bringing the NPA into disrepute by speaking to the media, either directly or via her attorney, without authorisation, notes a report on the News24 site. She also allegedly brought the NPA into disrepute in her Labour Court application, in which she contended that acting National Director of Public Prosecutions Nomgcobo Jiba suspended her in an attempt to protect Mdluli. William Mokhari, counsel for the NPA, said she made these allegations 'when you knew that in actual fact your suspension related to your conduct in the Kumba/ICT matter'. Breytenbach was suspended on 30 April. Full report on the News24 site