Rapetsu

ADV Johnson was never informed by Chief Perumal that statements had been taken from Mr Adams, Mr Rapetsu, and Advocate Ramsamy.

“No. I never came to know about that.”

Mr Rapetsu and Chief Perumal should have addressed all issues related to the investigation together and produced a single document instead of separate statements taken on the same date.

“And if either Mr Rapetsu or Chief Perumal felt that, wait, there is something else still to be dealt with on an aspect, it should have been dealt with all at the same time. If there was a need to, it should have been captured in one document and then commissioned, and then we move on to the next and soon and soon.”

Chief Perumal wrote his own statement behind the backs of the other investigators and commissioned Mr Adams to depose on it, which may lead to conflicting official records.

“Mr Perumal, Chief Perumal, behind their backs, because there is no better way of saying this, behind their backs he goes and he decides to write his own statement that he commissions without the other two knowing, and he gets Mr Adams to depose.”

Statement 3485 was commissioned by Rapetsu and provided by the witness, not post-factum and distinct from those commissioned by Mr Perumal.

“485 was commissioned by Rapetsu, so should it not be part of CJC 394... 3485 was provided by the witness ... No. It is only those commissioned by Mr Perumal”

Witnesses testifying to CJC394 deny knowledge of statements commissioned by Mr Perumal and state Mr Perumal took statements from Mr Adams, not on 6 January 2025 but at other times when Mr Adams and Rapetsu were together.

“they deny any knowledge of those statements as commissioned by Mr Perumal ... it definitely is not on the 6th of January 2025, because they were together at all times”

There was further engagement in January between Advocate Johnson, Investigator Rapetsu, Advocate Ramsami and Mr Adams to supplement the statements in the dockets.

“what did happen later on in January is that Mr Rapetsu , Advocate Ramsami and Mr Perumal , after having gone through those dockets together with the section 27 , then had further engagements with Mr Adams in order to amplify or supplement the statements that were in the docket”

The investigation team had Mr Rapetsu, Mr Padayachee, and Mr Wessels as investigators with Mr Wessels acting as the chief financial investigator.

“We had Mr Rapetsu, who is also an investigator. We had Mr Padayachee as an investigator. We had Mr Wessels as the chief financial investigator.”

Investigator Rapetsu was tasked by Chief Perumal to collect certain dockets as part of a broad investigation.

“the tasking is given by Chief Perumal to Rapetsu, go and collect the dockets”

Rapetsu fetched the dockets on or about 6 December 2024 and the briefing took place on that day.

“Rapetsu who went to fetch the dockets must have went on that same day, which means that the briefing would have taken place on that particular day too”

Rapetsu assisted in the investigation team by retrieving dockets and working on the Lushaba matter and the Brooklyn CAS 542 docket related to Mokwele.

“with Rapetsu, he assisted on the first one and the second one, meaning with the Brooklyn CAS 542, which is the appointment of Mokwele. His starting point was getting the dockets, and I know that he worked on the Lushaba matter”

Rapetsu was junior to Colonel Padayachee and rendered assistance as directed but was given instructions by the Chief.

“I s he a junior to you? Yes. So for purpose of this particular investigation, he would have been somebody who is rendering assistance to you, and he executes such duties as you direct. Yes, but just to go back again, it is not me giving him directions and instructions. It is the Chief that gives the instructions as to what we have to do”

Colonel Padayachee saw the dockets and therefore knows Rapetsu obtained them, but does not know the specific date when that happened.

“I would not know a specific date when he got the dockets, but I know he did get the dockets because I saw the dockets”

The Chief investigator provides instructions for necessary actions in the investigation, but routine or simple tasks may be directly directed by the lead investigator to assistants like Rapetsu without needing to go through the Chief each time.

“At the start of the investigation, remember there is a number of allegations. So the specific, like example, the dockets, now he has got that, but with the particular dockets that I am working with, if there is something I need in that, I would task him. It does not mean that I must go to the chief to tell him, he is working with me, we are together, and he is assisting on it, so I can say, you know what, do a section 28 there, or get me this, that. I do not mean that every time I need him or somebody else, it has to go through the chief. The chief is just there to brief on the different investigations, this is yours, yours, yours, you can do this, this, this, and it goes forward from there. And then obviously the feedback will go and the monitoring of the process will go back to him.”