Drugs stolen from police lab

2010-02-10 20:17

Pretoria - The police's failure to protect samples and confiscated material stored at its forensics science laboratory in Pretoria had resulted in the theft of drugs worth an estimated R50m on the street, the DA said on Wednesday.

"The forensic science laboratory is in crisis," said DA police spokesperson Debbie Schafer

The DA had been told that 11 bags of narcotics seized at OR Tambo International Airport and taken to the laboratory for testing had disappeared between 2007 and 2008, she said.

Two of the bags were stolen after closed circuit cameras were installed, while an official caught on camera removing the drugs had since been promoted and bought an expensive house, Schafer claimed.

The same person was allegedly implicated in a second incident in which sample bag numbers were switched.

"No arrests have been made in connection with the missing drugs," she said

Crime within ranks

She said a recent fire in the drug sample storeroom cast doubt on the integrity of the laboratory, which was a fundamental aspect of crime detection.

"If the [South African Police Service] cannot even deal with crime within its own ranks, how can it efficiently solve crimes in society at large?" she asked.

Schafer said she would write to the divisional police commissioner to ensure that proper sample safety measures were put into place and that the official implicated be suspended pending an investigation.

Police ministry spokesperson Zweli Mnisi said some of the country's forensic science laboratories would undergo major overhauls this year to ensure they could effectively deal with the huge amounts of samples sent for testing.

Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa and most MECs responsible for safety and security portfolios had expressed concern at the state of some of the labs, he said.

Following reports of backlogs at the laboratories across the country, Mthethwa had urged the ministry's secretariat of police to follow up and prioritise this matter.

"We noted the pertinent question posed to the ministry by the chairperson of the portfolio committee on police on the state of equipment at these labs," Mnisi said.

"We assure her and Parliament that we have prioritised the issues they raised, which include looking at the mentoring and skills retention programmes at some of these labs."

- SAPA