By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
@GettyImages.
Cape Town’s alleged underworld boss Nafiz Modack was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment for corruption in the Cape Town Regional Court.
Modack, who was also arrested in connection with the murder of anti-gang unit detective Lt-Col Charl Kinnear, was sentenced on Friday.
Three years of the sentence will be suspended, meaning he will spend seven years behind bars.
He was accused of paying for police officer to recover his cars that had gone missing.
According to prosecutors, the investigation led by the Hawks’ serious corruption investigation unit unveiled a scheme in which Modack colluded with former senior police officer Brigadier Kolindren Govender.
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.”
Govender received a five-year sentence, suspended for four and a half years after pleading guilty to being in a corrupt relationship with Modack.
The court also ordered that the alleged underworld kingpin be declared unfit to possess a firearm.
Modack is also on trial for alleged tax evasion and another matter where he faces 122 charges for various crimes related to operating a criminal enterprise.
In late 2017, Modack had been among a group of suspects detained on charges relating to the nightclub security industry and allegations that they took over security operations at clubs and restaurants, forcing owners to pay them.
Kinnear testified in the ensuing case when Modack and his co-accused applied for bail in the Cape Town Magistrates’ Court. The case ended in the acquittal of Modack and three co-accused.
Meanwhile, claims and suspicions of cops colluding with suspects and criminals extend much further, especially in the Western Cape, South Africa’s gangsterism capital.