News Desk Reporter
Major General Feroz Khan has been dismissed from the South African police after an internal disciplinary process reached its conclusion.
The suspended Crime Intelligence deputy head was deemed dismissed under Regulation 9(7)(b) of the police discipline regulations. Police said the decision followed his failure to appear before the designated senior officer responsible for handling the expedited disciplinary process.
The dismissal comes after Khan tried to stop the disciplinary proceedings through the Labour Court.
On Monday, 31 August, Judge Connie Prinsloo struck his urgent application off the roll. The court found that it lacked jurisdiction to hear the application, alternatively that the matter did not meet the requirements for urgency.
The ruling cleared the way for the disciplinary process to continue. It did not determine the truth or otherwise of the wider allegations against Khan.
The disciplinary proceedings indicate that the inquiry found Khan guilty of misconduct and conduct that brought the police service into disrepute. His dismissal was reportedly recommended as the appropriate sanction.
Police subsequently applied the provisions allowing him to be deemed dismissed after he failed to appear before the officer dealing with the expedited process.
Khan’s removal comes while several other matters involving him remain unresolved.
He has been a key figure in evidence presented at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry, which is examining allegations of corruption, criminal infiltration and interference within law enforcement.
Khan has not yet testified before the commission. Evidence relating to allegations against him has been presented in his absence.
Among the allegations raised is that Khan interfered with the investigation into a major cocaine seizure in Aeroton in 2021. Witnesses have also made claims about his alleged involvement in the handling of the investigation.
The commission has further heard evidence concerning Khan’s alleged relationship with businessman Mohamed “Mo” Sayed. WhatsApp messages placed before the inquiry have been cited as evidence of alleged attempts to facilitate government tenders involving Sayed.
Questions have also been raised about Khan’s financial affairs.
Evidence presented to the commission included claims that he had accumulated about 30 vehicles in a single year and had a property portfolio estimated at around R39 million. His alleged business interests and possible links to police procurement have also come under scrutiny.
These matters remain allegations. Khan has not given evidence before the commission to respond to them, and the commission has not made findings of guilt against him.
His appearance before the inquiry has been repeatedly delayed on medical grounds.
Khan was shot and wounded in Johannesburg in June, shortly before he was due to testify. His legal representatives have relied on his medical condition in seeking postponements.
On 1 September, the commission postponed his testimony to 28 September. It also set conditions around any further delay, including the possibility of an independent medical assessment to establish whether he is fit to testify.
Khan is also facing criminal charges linked to an incident at OR Tambo International Airport in 2021.
The case concerns 75.9 grams of unwrought gold valued at about R62,836. Khan was arrested earlier this year alongside Gauteng Hawks head Major General Ebrahim Kadwa and businessman Tariq Downes.
The charges include corruption, defeating the ends of justice and contravening the Precious Metals Act.
The criminal case has not been finalised, and the allegations against Khan have not been proven in court.
His dismissal therefore does not bring the various matters involving him to an end. The criminal proceedings will continue, while the Madlanga Commission is still expected to hear Khan’s evidence.
Parliament’s Police Portfolio Committee chairperson Ian Cameron welcomed Khan’s dismissal. He said he had raised concerns about Khan’s conduct and the Crime Intelligence environment for some time.
Khan’s legal team has indicated that it intends to challenge the dismissal through the appropriate legal channels. The criminal case against him and the outstanding matters before the Madlanga Commission will continue separately.