Retired Hawks head General Godfrey Lebeya has told the Madlanga Commission that he only became aware of a Port Shepstone storage facility after 541 kilograms of drugs were stolen from the premises.
Lebeya’s testimony contradicts that of former KwaZulu-Natal Hawks head General Lesetja Senona, who previously told the commission that he had informed Lebeya about the decision to store the seized drugs at the Hawks facility.
The conflicting accounts came under scrutiny during Lebeya’s testimony before the commission.
Evidence leader Advocate Lee Seegels-Ncube confronted Lebeya with the apparent contradiction, pointing out that either one of the generals was mistaken or that one of them was not telling the truth about what happened.
“Because it’s either that General Senona is lying, or you’re lying, or you’re both mistaken about what transpired,” Seegels-Ncube said.
Lebeya responded that he could not accuse Senona of lying, but maintained that he had no recollection of being informed about the storage arrangements.
“Yeah. I can’t say that he is lying. And then I can’t recall him informing me as to where he has stored the drugs. So that is the view that I had, that he did not inform me,” Lebeya told the commission.
The dispute centres on what senior Hawks officials knew about the location of the seized drugs before they were stolen.
Senona’s version suggests that Lebeya was informed about the storage decision before the theft, while Lebeya maintains that he only became aware of the facility after the 541kg drug seizure was stolen.
The conflicting testimony is likely to remain a key issue as the Madlanga Commission examines the circumstances surrounding the storage and subsequent theft of the drugs, as well as the actions and knowledge of senior police officials.