Four police officers and a police reservist from the Namahadi police station in Phuthaditjhaba in the Free State were arrested on Sunday after they were spotted drinking at a local shebeen on Saturday.

Also on Saturday, six police officers from the Brooklyn and Silverton police stations in Pretoria were arrested following a tip-off to the Mpumalanga provincial anti-corruption unit that they had stolen R30,000 in cash from motorists passing through a roadblock. 

According to reports, the officers demanded a bribe of R100 after realising that a driver and his two passengers did not have proper documentation. They then searched their car, found the money and pocketed it.

The 12th policeman was arrested at the police barracks in Soshanguve for organising an illicit gathering there.

Sitole said the police would all face criminal charges, including corruption charges, as well as internal disciplinary processes.

"While the greater majority of SAPS members have been hard at work to flatten the curve of the spread of the Covid-19 virus, there have been some members disregarding the regulations as well as committing some heinous crimes, thus bringing into disrepute both the SAPS as well as the good work its members are doing," he said.

"While these incidents are disappointing, it must be noted that these are isolated incidents."

Sitole said the fact that the 12 were arrested was proof of the SAPS's commitment in the national campaign against the coronavirus.

He urged officers to continue enforcing the regulations governing the lockdown that began on March 26 to contain the spread of the virus. 

The lockdown is one of the strictest implemented by any country amid the global pandemic and the local police and soldiers have been criticised for using excessive force. 

Police Minister Bheki Cele, in particular, has faced criticism for focusing with zeal on enforcing the alcohol ban included in the regulations, but appearing reluctant to rebuke officers who overstep the line.

The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) called on its members to show restraint after a 44-year-old man died in Alexandra township north of Johannesburg earlier this month after he was allegedly beaten by soldiers.

Sitole pointed to the seizure at the weekend of R8 million's worth of bootleg alcohol in KwaZulu-Natal and urged the police to continue enforcing the regulations. He said this and the arrest of 13 foreign nationals near Tongaat for flouting the lockdown rules should send a stern warning to the public.

“The arrest of our own is both disheartening and at the same time pleasing in a sense that it shows that the SAPS remains unbiased and that it  has the capacity and the capability to decisively deal with criminality within its ranks”, Sitole said.

African News Agency