Twelve senior police officers and a company director have been arrested in Pretoria in connection with alleged corruption linked to the irregular awarding of a tender to Medicare 24. The arrests were carried out by the National Prosecuting Authority’s Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC).
The accused are expected to make their first appearance in the Pretoria Magistrates’ Court on charges of corruption, fraud, and contravention of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA). Sources familiar with the arrests said some of those detained were members of the bid committee involved in the tender process.
A former senior employee of businessman Vusi “Cat” Matlala has also allegedly been arrested. The arrests mark a major development in a case that appears to reach into senior levels of policing and procurement oversight. Authorities had not yet publicly released the full details of the charges, the identities of those arrested, or the specific role each suspect allegedly played in the awarding or handling of the contract.
The case is likely to raise renewed questions about corruption in public procurement and the involvement of senior law enforcement officials in tender-related processes. An official statement from the police or prosecuting authorities is still awaited. For now, the arrests are understood to be linked to investigations into alleged irregularities surrounding the Medicare Tshwane District contract.
