Socialite Serge Cabonge apparently once helped the family of a man who “sits in the front at the Madlanga Commission” after the man’s daughter faced charges following a collision with a woman carrying a child, the Randburg Magistrate’s Court heard.
Cabonge claimed that he used his police connections to assist and that the charges were dropped within a week of their request for help.
The allegations were revealed in an audio recording played on Tuesday when former top cop Shadrack Sibiya returned to court for the continuation of his bail hearing.
The State alleges that Sibiya raped an 18-year-old woman at a Sandton hotel on May 15 after she was given alcohol and lost consciousness.
He is also accused of sexually grooming a 16-year-old girl through WhatsApp between July and August, and possessing and sharing sexually explicit images of her.
The father of the teenager is referred to in court as Mr M to protect her identity, and is known to Sibiya.
In addition, the State alleges that he trafficked three people for sexual exploitation.
The 25-minute recording captured a conversation between Cabonge and Mr M.
Cabonge describes relationship with man linked to Madlanga Commission
During the conversation, Cabonge speaks of his close relationship with a man he said he had known for many years.
“You see the guy who is sitting in Madlanga there (Commission) in the front there? I have been very close to one of them for many years,” he says.
The man’s identity was not disclosed in the recording, and no name was mentioned during the conversation.
Cabonge also refers to a magistrate who he said connected him to the man because they lived in the same residential complex.
“You know how [I know him]? Through that magistrate lady. Yes, because they live in the same complex,” he said.
The recording did not identify the magistrate to whom Cabonge was referring.
Alleged assistance in withdrawn case
He claimed the woman had been driving in Sandton when she collided with a woman who was carrying a child.
“There was a time when my ex-girlfriend’s daughter was involved in an incident. She was driving around Sandton when she bumped into a woman who was carrying a child,” Cabonge says.
He added that the man involved in the matter - the father of the woman involved in the accident - was, at the time, a judge president at one of the country’s major courts.
According to Cabonge, the woman’s mother contacted him after the Sandton police began making inquiries about the incident.
“My girlfriend called me and said, ‘Look, I have a problem. My daughter was driving around Sandton when she bumped into somebody. Now the Sandton police are calling. Can you assist?’” he said.
Cabonge claims the man was reluctant to approach people he knew for help. Another person, whom he referred to as Nika, told the man that he knew someone well-connected in Sandton who could assist.
“They called me, and I went to the house. When I arrived, I found this guy (the man from the Mandlanga Commission). I wondered where I had seen his face before, perhaps on television. At that time, he was a judge president,” Cabonge said.
He claimed “Nika” introduced him to the man, who explained the circumstances of the case.
Cabonge claims charges were withdrawn within a week
Cabonge says he asked the man for the case number and made a phone call while they were together to have the case checked on the system.
“They gave me the information and said, ‘Why are you stressing? The person investigating this case is your friend, Memo,’” he says.
Cabonge claims he was told the investigating officer was someone he knew.
“I said, ‘Give me two weeks.’ When I went back, I was dealing with the people involved. The matter was withdrawn,” he says.
Cabonge adds that he returned to the house a week later and informed “Nika” that the case had been withdrawn.
“He called the guy, who came over and was happy. He then called the woman, who said she had already received a call telling her to withdraw the matter.”
According to Cabonge, the man thanked him and said he owed him a favour.
“The man said to me, ‘You are the man. I did not feel comfortable speaking to anyone for assistance. I only spoke to my friend here, Nika, who told me I must call you... If I had just known you, I would owe you something,’” Cabonge says.
Detective confirms identities and source of recording
The investigating officer in Sibiya's case, Detective-Sergeant Nokukhanya Ndlovu, confirmed that the recording captured a conversation between Cabonge and Mr M.
She told the court the recording had allegedly been sent to Sibiya’s wife, Sizakele Dlamini.
Sibiya’s lawyer, Estelle Killian SC, asked Ndlovu whether she knew why the recording had been sent to Dlamini.
Ndlovu said she had been verifying an affidavit submitted by Dlamini.
“I was assessing the affidavit provided by Mrs Dlamini and all the attachments submitted by the defence, as well as ascertaining whether Mr M had ever stated that the case had been withdrawn,” Ndlovu said.
She explained that, during the process, Mr M had confirmed that the conversation was his and that the attached recording was authentic.
Killian pointed out that although Mr M had confirmed the recording’s contents, he had not explained why he sent it to Dlamini.
Ndlovu said she could not comment on that.
Purpose of recording questioned
Asked whether Ndlovu had questioned Mr M about why he sent the recording, the detective said the matter remained under investigation, including the contents of the accompanying note.
“What I had to inquire about on that day was the withdrawal of the docket,” Ndlovu said.
The defence indicated that it no longer wished to introduce the audio recording and had made it available to the State.
Killian asked why the recording was being played in court and what the court was expected to take from it.
Ndlovu responded that it was being presented because Mr M had confirmed it, and it provided context for the affidavit submitted by Dlamini.
She declined to comment on Killian's comment that Sibiya was neither the subject of the discussion nor mentioned in the conversation.
Magistrate Hleziphi Mkhasibe postponed the matter to Wednesday for the continuation of Sibiya’s bail hearing.
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