Former Verulam cop’s 'corrupt relationship' with crime boss leads to jail time

AN ALLEGED underworld crime boss who paid over a hundred thousand rands to a high-ranking former KwaZulu-Natal police officer, has been sentenced to seven years behind bars. 

Nafiz Modack,44, was sentenced to ten years imprisonment for corruption in the Cape Town Regional Court last Friday.  Three years of the sentence was suspended for a period of five years. 

He was also declared unfit to possess a firearm.

Lieutenant Colonel Siyabulela Vukubi, a Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigation (Hawks) spokesperson in Western Cape, said between 2011 and 2013, Modack was involved in criminal activities with former senior police officer, Brigadier Kolindren Govender, who was the station commander at the Cape Town Central SAPS at the time. 

“An investigation by the Hawks' Serious Corruption Investigation revealed that Modack acted with common purpose by paying gratification in a total amount of R146 000 to Govender in return for special treatment.

“By endorsing these corruption activities, Govender prevented a cooperation between an officer from Paarl SAPS Vehicle Identification Section, and the investigating officer in a matter based at Cape Town Central SAPS. As a result of Govender's actions, a Mercedes Benz which belonged to Modack and was the centre of investigation was never seized,” he said. 

Govender, formerly of Verulam, pleaded guilty to 51 charges of corruption that related to the “corrupt relationship” he had with Modack, and was sentenced to five years imprisonment in 2019. 

However, four and a half years of the sentence was suspended, on condition that he was not convicted of corruption.

At the time, the court ordered that the sentence would run concurrently with a six-year sentence that was handed down on a different matter.

According to reports, Govender, now age 64, and his wife, Logambal Govender, together with their co-accused which included other high-ranking police officers and a businessman, were arrested for allegedly partaking in corrupt activities and being part of a criminal syndicate in 2015. 

They were charged with, among others, racketeering, corruption and trading in a firearm without a dealer’s license. 

Govender, who held the position of Provincial Head Inspectorate Compliance at the time, and his wife, who was the station commander of Bellville SAPS, were accused of receiving unauthorised gratifications and involving themselves in the unlawful disposal of a firearm.

Govender was found guilty only on the corruption charge and sentence in Western Cape High Court in May 2018. 

According to the judgment, he was convicted of corruption on the grounds that he received gratifications from three of his co-accused to the value of R24 601.44. 

In addition, he made interventions for one of his co-accused,  where he expressed his willingness to go after hours to an address in Gugulethu to check on a vehicle allegedly used in the burglary and theft at the apartment of his co-accused’s brother, in the event that the cluster commander of Milnerton didn’t have anyone available to do so. 

According to the court papers, Govender also introduced the same co-accused to a police officer in his office. This was so that the police officer could assist his co-accused’s daughter with an appeal concerning an application for a firearm license. In return, Govender asked his co-accused if he had spare tickets for the Cape Town Jazz festival for a police officer with the rank of lieutenant-general in Mpumalanga. His co-accused gave the tickets to the lieutenant-general.

Govender also introduced the same co-accused to a police officer to assist with an application to temporarily possess a firearm. He also requested the police officer to hand over a Norinco Pistol to his co-accused in terms of an application to temporarily possess a firearm. 

According to the court papers, Govender also arranged an appointment for an associate of his co-accused with a designated police officer who deals with firearms to assist him with an application for a firearm license.  

In addition, he called the detective commander at the Phoenix SAPS  to assist his co-accused with obtaining clearance, and handing over of his vehicle which was recovered and kept in police custody at the time. 

Govender was sentenced to six years direct imprisonment, of which two years were suspended for a period of five years on condition that he was not convicted of corruption committed during the period of suspension. 

His wife was not found guilty on any of the charges.

THE POST