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- Anti-crime activist and independent safety consultant Zona Morton has asked AfriForum's advocate Gerrie Nel to investigate the murder case of Western Cape Anti-Gang Unit detective Charl Kinnear.
- Morton told News24 she was concerned by the attacks on police officers, while Kinnear's murder and the police's failure to solve the crime warranted action.
- Kinnear's wife, Nicolette, said the police could have acted to prevent her husband's death.
Western Cape anti-crime activist
and independent safety consultant Zona Morton has asked AfriForum's
private prosecution unit to help investigate the murder of Anti-Gang Unit
detective Charl Kinnear.
Morton contacted Cape Forum, a sister organisation of the national lobby group, to intervene in the case.
She told News24 police inaction in solving the murder of Kinnear - who was gunned down outside his Bishop Lavis home in Cape Town on 18 September 2020 - prompted her to solicit AfriForum's services.
Morton said the attacks and murders of police officers were alarming and warranted action, including from herself as a dedicated crimefighter.
She added calls for Police Minister Bheki Cele to curb police killings had fallen on deaf ears.
"So many times, we have urged the minister of police to act with haste against these brutal killers of our men and women in blue.
"The only thing that happened was another arrival at a heartbroken family's home, giving condolences," said Morton.
READ | 'Classified' report into Charl Kinnear's murder will be released once implicated people are charged
The Cape Forum's Heindrich Wyngaard added the organisation wanted a devolution of police powers from national to provincial governments, to ensure more efficient policing and management.
Kinnear's wife, Nicolette, said the police could have protected her husband because they knew he was under threat.
She added:Nicolette lamented the secrecy
of a "highly classified" police report into her husband's murder -
which Cele said would only be released once those implicated were charged -
saying it allowed authorities to get away with a lack of accountability.
She said she hoped the private investigation by AfriForum would yield answers for the family.
"The SAPS needs to answer why, three years later, no one has been charged. As a family, we feel they failed my husband.
"They have had a second chance to make this right and own up to their mistakes, [but have not used it]. It seems as if people are being protected, and that is wrong."
Nicolette, however, added she was grateful to the investigating officers who spent time investigating the case, which resulted in 15 people appearing in the Western Cape High Court earlier this year."There were task teams from the Hawks that have been working non-stop and doing a good job thus far.
"Some were not from the province and were working away from home for 18 months, and we appreciate the sacrifices they made to get to the 15 [who appeared in court]. It's a huge sacrifice," she said.
Before his death, Kinnear had been investigating several high-profile cases involving underworld boss Nafiz Modack and which implicated police officers.
Kinnear had received several death threats and had previously been under armed police guard. However, his protection was withdrawn in December 2019.
AfriForum's advocate Gerrie Nel,
who heads up its private prosecution unit, confirmed the group's involvement in
the case.
"We can confirm that we are on record for the Kinnear family. We will engage with the SAPS and the National Prosecuting Authority in due course. It is too early to say anything more at this stage."
NOTE: This story has been updated to reflect an additional comment from Nicolette Kinnear.
