JOHANNESBURG - Suspended Deputy National Police Commissioner Shadrack Sibiya has told the court that his associate, Bishop Azwihangwi Maumela, “will talk at every opportunity” he gets.
Arguing for Sibiya’s release on bail at the Randburg Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, his legal representative, Estelle Killian, said Sibiya had never instructed Maumela to conduct interviews or make contact with witnesses.
This follows a recording presented in court last Thursday in which Maumela was heard asking the father of a 16-year-old girl to drop charges against Sibiya. He was also heard asking the father to persuade an 18-year-old rape complainant to withdraw her complaint against Sibiya.
On the first day of his bail application, Sibiya assured the court that he would not interfere with witnesses. The State has argued that Maumela’s alleged conduct should be viewed in that context.
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Sibiya, through his lawyer, sought to downplay Maumela’s comments, telling the court: “He will talk at every opportunity that he can get, and it is political speak to say, ‘we are going to retaliate’; it does not mean we are going to take up arms and fight.”
In an interview with the media following Sibiya’s arrest in September, Maumela said: “If the president cannot intervene, we’re going to retaliate, because we cannot have law enforcement that has been used to target individuals.”
He later apologised for the remarks.
Relying on the recording, the State has urged the court to closely scrutinise Maumela and his relationship with Sibiya.
Maumela has been vocal in defending his friend. Speaking to eNCA last month, he denied that he and Sibiya had been at a strip club when Sibiya was arrested, saying they had instead been at a restaurant.
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He has also criticised Sibiya’s accusers and questioned the circumstances surrounding his friend’s arrest.
Sibiya faces five charges, including rape, human trafficking and three counts of sexual grooming involving a 16-year-old girl.
According to the allegations, Sibiya plied an 18-year-old woman with alcohol before she allegedly lost consciousness and was raped at a hotel in Sandton.
He has denied the rape allegation, maintaining that the encounter was consensual.
The bail application continues.