Paul O'Sullivan

M R R A P H E S U was instructed to contact Mr Paul O'Sullivan to find out the details of an investigation and whether a case had been opened, and during the interview received two emails from Mr O'Sullivan containing a letter and a report.

“Yes, I was instructed to contact Mr O'Sullivan and to find out from him what he was investigating and whether he had reported or opened a case... he sent me two emails... it is the document that I have already explained, the letter and the report that I have already indicated.”

Mr O'Sullivan sent two emails on 13 January 2025; the first with a ministerial directive annexure and the second containing details of Ms Mokwele.

“The first is sent at 14.11 and there is the directive of the Minister attached... The second email was sent on the same day... which contains Ms Mokwele's details.”

An email trail shows that the email was sent to Advocate Johnson by Mr O'Sullivan on 5 January 2025.

“When I was looking at the emails... this email was sent already to Advocate Johnson... By Mr O'Sullivan... it should be 5th of January.”

Contrary to Ms Johnson's testimony that she never dealt with Mr O'Sullivan on the Mokwele matter, email records show she received an email from him on 5 January 2025.

“When Ms Johnson said to us... that she has never had any dealings with Mr O'Sullivan... that would not be correct, because she would have received an email from him.”

Attached to the email from Mr O'Sullivan to Ms Mokwele is the ministerial directive dated 31 December 2024 relating to Crime Intelligence, Points of Entry and Political Killings Task Team (PKTT).

“Attached to the email, perhap the Annexure MRR 13, is the directive of the Minister relating to Crime Intelligence, Points of Entry and Political Killings Task Team, dated 31 December 2024.”

The witness started investigating why General Khan's name was specifically pushed, drawing parallels with President Ramaphosa whom the ANC would want to protect, and identifying a so-called 'Indian Cabal' related to IDAC involving persons such as Johnson, Padayachee, Khan, Paul O'Sullivan, and Brian McKnight.

“Then later, that is when I started looking at this thing... so-called Indian Cabal... a subject of many in IDAC... there is a certain relationship when I connect dots between Johnson, Padayachee, Khan, I also put in Paul O'Sullivan there, Brian...”

Hongwemp was experiencing fear for his life due to the situation with General Khan, having received warnings from people on the street advising him to be careful.

“I got so many of those in a way that I started to take note that okay now I have put my life in danger with this thing. But the day this happened, it was when I asked u Baba (Mr) Paul O’Sullivan.”

Mr Hongwemp questioned why Paul O'Sullivan and Sarah-Jane Trent focused investigations on General Phahlane rather than General Khan, despite many allegations against Khan.

“I was probing that when it comes to General Phahlane, they already had proof of the sound system. And he answered, u Paul O’Sullivan, he loves South Africa, that is why he is investigating. So that is why I asked him, as a lover of South Africa, how do you then generate who you want to target, where you see the allegations of General Khan are so many, but you focus on Phahlane? That is the issue.”

Radovan Krejčér was in possession of Paul O'Sullivan's cellular phone records and was monitoring his phone contacts.

“Radovan Krejčér was now in possession of my cellular phone records to the extent that he was looking at the people I was talking to on the phone”

Paul O'Sullivan considered launching an urgent application against Vodacom after discovering phone records were in possession of Radovan Krejčér, but was advised against it by Senior Counsel and did not proceed.

“I planned to launch an application... against Vodacom... I drafted a sworn statement for it, but I never actually launched. And the reason I never launched was because when I got Senior Counsel's opinion, he said that I might fail with that application. So, I decided to keep my powder dry.”

Paul O'Sullivan received a tip-off from the Organised Crime Office in Germiston about Colonel Steyn arranging to drop his telephone number into 205 applications being drawn up by the Organised Crime Unit.

“Colonel Steyn was arranging to have my telephone number dropped into 205 applications that were being drawn up as part of the normal work in progress that the Organised Crime Unit in Germiston was doing.”

Vodacom disclosed to Paul O'Sullivan that they had received section 205 requests for call data related to cases of kidnapping, assault, theft, armed robbery and murder, connected to investigations in Tokoz and Primrose.

“Vodacom is obligated to disclose this information if we receive a section 205 to do so... There were three applications made... Primrose Case 09/03/2011 kidnapping, assault and theft; Tokoza case 26/04/2011 armed robbery; and the third one is Tokoza case 31/06/2011 murder.”

Ian Levitt Attorneys, on behalf of General Khan, wrote a letter to the National Commissioner complaining about a tip-off complaint implicating General Khan, alleging unethical conduct by complainant Paul O'Sullivan and access to personal information in contravention of POPI Act.

“my problem with it, apart from complaining about me highlighting alleged unethical conduct on his part, the lawyer does not address any of the allegations whatsoever ... The whole thing is about complaining about Paul O'Sullivan ... that Sullivan had accessed our client's personal information ... in contravention of the Protection of Personal Information Act, POPI.”

General Khan demanded to know why a complaint was laid against him, but the witness denied ever making such a complaint to him.

“I have now got him coming to my office, demanding to know why I have laid a complaint against him ... I just denied it. I said, no, I did not lay a complaint against you.”

At the time of the events in question, the speaker was on the ground and knew what was going on concerning Mahlangu and Nkabinde, and that Mkhwanazi was fishing for information about Robert McBride and Paul O'Sullivan.

“I knew that this related to Mandla Mahlangu, by the way, Cedric Nkabinde... he does mention that Mkhwanazi was fishing to see what he could find out about Robert McBride and Paul O'Sullivan”

General Mkhwanazi requested information that could implicate McBride in criminal wrongdoing involving Paul O'Sullivan.

“Mkhwanazi asked me for information that could implicate McBride in criminal wrongdoing involving Mr Paul O'Sullivan”

During the relevant period, there were multiple attempts to derail the IPID investigation against Phahlane by false claims that Paul O'Sullivan was taking over IPID, which were false.

“multiple attempts trying to derail the investigation by IPID against Phahlane, Phahlane was going into the public domain and making these comments that Paul O'Sullivan was taking over IPID, which of course were false comments, absolutely false”