MBABANE: King Mswati’s senior wife Inkhosikati LaMatsebula allegedly warned the police Executive Command against employing any of her relatives with previous criminal records.

This is contained in a bundle of documentary and electronic evidence in possession of this Swaziland News that expose how the then National Commissioner of Police Isaac Magagula allegedly colluded with some senior police officers to manipulate the government fingerprints system with the sole intention of employing convicted criminals within the police service.

On or around the year 2010, the police allegedly reserved vacancies for relatives of Inkhosikati LaMatsebula and other senior royal family members, they submitted names of their relatives to the then National Commissioner now Senator Magagula who was allegedly the mastermind in the finger-prints scandal that saw the police flooded and or dominated alleged convicted criminals.

But circumstantial evidence in our possession suggests that some of the relatives of the royal family members were vetted and subsequent findings uncovered that some of them had previous criminal records, it was then that Inkhosikati LaMatsebula warned that she doesn’t want any of her relative with a criminal record to join the police service.

Lucky ‘Obama’ Matsentjwa who was working closely with the then National Commissioner Isaac Magagula under the fingerprints department with the Police Headquarters confirmed the matter.

“I can confirm that Inkhosikati LaMatsebula was very strict on this fingerprints matter, she never influenced the police to employ her relatives with criminal records, bekavele atjele baphatsi kutsi umuntfu lonetinkinga tekuboshwa akabekwe eceleni” said the former police officer when speaking to this Swaziland News.

This publication previously reported that on or around the year 2010, Isaac Magagula, the then President of Royal Leopard FC allegedly colluded with then Deputy Commissioner Khisimusi Ndlovu, senior police officers Mxolisi Dlamini and Frank Hurube among others to delete fingerprints of Siboniso Rocco Malambe, a Royal Leopard player who was subsequently employed in the police service through a fraud and corruption process.

The ‘secret’ documents reveal that Malambe had been previously arrested, charged and subsequently convicted for obstruction of justice under case number B128/2006, he was sentenced by the court on or around 15 March 2006 and as a result did not qualify to be employed as a member of the law-enforcement agency.

The evidence further discloses other soccer players, relatives of senior police officers and that of members of the royal family who were employed in the three security forces despite having criminal records, some of the names cannot be revealed for now pending further investigations and gathering of collaborative evidence.

Reached for comments by this publication, Siboniso Malambe, an ex-convict now a law enforcer based in Manzini Police Station denied knowledge of any previous conviction, he later dropped the call when probed further by this investigative journalist.

“I am not aware of any previous conviction mnetfu” he said before terminating the conversation.

An independent investigation uncovered that on or around 2017 Judge Nkosinathi Maseko, the then Director of Public Prosecutions allegedly colluded with Isaac Magagula and sabotaged an intended investigation and or the subsequent prosecution of the senior police officers. Insiders told this publication that the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) was prevented from investigating the matter, instead the police Executive suggested that it should be investigated by junior police officers within the law enforcement agency.

“So, the whole investigation was manipulated and sabotaged after the ACC was blocked, it was then a case of junior police officers tasked to investigate their superiors and the results were obvious, you can’t investigate your boss” said the insider.

Senator Isaac Magagula who was instrumental in the fingerprints scandal did not respond to our questions on the subject matter, however, on or around 20 August 2017 he was quoted by the Times of Eswatini confirming that he knew the officers who were involved in the matter without disclosing that he was actually part of the corruption mess.

“After the DPP had seen the document, he said he knew everyone who is involved in the matter but won’t name them as yet. He said he would approach the matter in his own professional way. He said sometimes it was better not to bundle people together in a case depending on the status of the investigations and the facts. He said sometimes it is better to tackle one case and complete it before tackling the other one. He said this openly,” Magagula said.

Eswatini Police Spokesperson Phindile Vilakati had not responded to our questions at the time of compiling this report.

A separate investigation further uncovered that in the midst of the finger-prints scandal with the senior police officers fearing being exposed, the police Executive Command under the leadership of Isaac Magagula allegedly fabricated evidence to implicate Lucky ‘Obama’ Matsenjwa, a key witness in the fingerprint scandal in the murder of another key witness Mduduzi Vusumuzi ‘Schaza’ Matsebula.The intention was to keep him behind bars while raiding his home to seize and destroy documents that might implicate the police superiors in the corruption mess. The circumstances surrounding the death of Matsebula who was found floating in a river at Ebuka could not be ascertained, but insiders confirmed that he was also a key witness in the fingerprints scandal involving senior police officers.

Reached for comments, Lucky ‘Obama’ Matsenjwa, a former police officer who was working at the Police Headquarters confirmed that an attempt was also made to kill him in prison through poisoning, he said the police Executive Command feared that he might leak sensitive information about them and the whole organization.

“I can confirm that an attempt was made to poison me while in prison because the police Executive Command feared that I have sensitive information about their corruption and how suspects are killed. Some people were suffocated, killed by the police, dumped in the various dams and rivers to be feasted on by crocodiles. They were later reported missing by their relatives and police claimed to be investigating when they knew very well that those people were dumped to crocodiles” he said.

On or around 07 June 2017, Hhohho Regional Commissioner wrote a memo to Isaac Magagula, the then National Commissioner handing over what was described as exhibits obtained from Lucky Matsenjwa, the exhibits were registered under reference number H/96/5/IV/145, the Hhohho Regional Commissioner position is currently occupied by Steven Dlamini.

The memo was directing Isaac Magagula to facilitate the handing over of the exhibits to a police pathologist for analysis in a Forensic Science Laboratory.

When asked to share a comment regarding the role of a pathologist in criminal proceedings, Sibusiso Nhlabatsi, a human rights lawyer said it is normally engaged in cases where the evidence linking the accused to the crime is questionable.

“A pathologist is normally engaged in cases where the suspect is accused with mere circumstantial evidence without any direct evidence that links them to the crime, the pathologist’s report would state whether the accused is linked or not” said the human rights lawyer.

But it appeared that the plot by the police Executive to throw Lucky Matsenjwa behind bars so he could die in prison as a way of destroying evidence to cover-up their alleged corruption and killing of suspects was dismantled by Judge Mbutfo Mamba who dismissed the ‘fabricated’ evidence of the police and subsequently acquitted the suspect on the murder charge. The judgement was delivered on 04 February 2020 and Matsenjwa was also acquitted on duplicated charges that included defeating the ends of justice and attempt to defeat course of justice.