Well, let's focus our attention now on a real tragedy out in Ikuruleni, the murder of its forensic audit head, Paul Marfole, fatally shot in a drive by shooting that is taking place on the R twenty three in the late hours of Monday afternoon. This is something that has happened before. It's happened to a number of people. Babita Diorkaran is somebody who comes to mind, but there have
been many, many others. Indeed, the two members of the Clutter family who were assassinated I think on the m one heading towards Pretoria, and there are others as well. What's going on here? Chad Thomas's CEO of IRS Forensic Investigations and very very familiar with the risks of doing this kind of work. Chat Thomas, Welcome and thanks very
much for your time. Do you generally know when things are becoming dangerous and when the person that is being investigated with you doing the work might do something as evil and desperate as this? And I asked that question because people say, well, at what point, should for example, auditors in a government department start getting protection? Are there warning signs that really ought to be heated and can be clearly understood.
Good oftening to you and the listeners. I think it's a very dangerous environment. It was something in the past where there was almost an unsaid respect between the underworld and those that try to enforce the law by investigating. They were hands off prosecutors were hands off magistrates, hands or investigators' hands off auditors or hands orf for this
seems to have changed the dynamic. Nows. It's easier to sort out a problem with a bullet that it is to allow somebody to testify against you, to have an investigation progressed to the next stage, and you must understand what the state capacity issues. They are very reliant or reports by auditors, investigators and legal practic and it's those reports that guide them and are able to give them a roadmap as into watch a subpoena, the listed clothes
of money where it went. So, Yes, the short and simple answer to your question is yes, auditors, investigators and other professionals in that space are now at risk.
It's an alarming thing, isn't it. Because we heard earlier today Clement had people calling in and sharing experiences and they were talking. One of them was saying that a family member also had threats to their children for example. All of that I would think doesn't excuse a failure to protect, but it does suggest it's complicated.
It is complicated because your investigators, your auditors, they don't qualify for witness protection. We've seen where a police officer who's investigating some serious, murderful higher cases involving some high profile names, is traveling around with the special task force they've been allocated to protect her. And it's a bizarre situation to see a police officer arriving with a special
task force taking up positions to ensure her safety. She's a police officer, this is her vocation, this is what she does, but she now needs protection because she's doing her job. We as IRIS Friends Investigations, had an office invasion with a suspect and fifteen armed people in the early part of twenty nineteen. That case is still ongoing in court. Luckily the mastermind is behind bars. He wasn't given bail. But the escalation over the years just shows
how embold and criminals have become. Because, like I said, at the outset of the inserts, there was this respect, there was a line that was never crossed. You never went for the tops, you never went for the prosecutors, and it now seems that that line is being crossed all the time.
In terms of how the state can do this better. I mean, I think it's fair to say, Chad Thomas, that there is no shortage of VIP protection staff. You just have to look at the budgets. You can also look at the blue lights that are coming up fast
behind you and say that these resources are available. From what you know, I mean, does the state prioritize in any way people who are corruption busters and offer them I don't know if they would be from the VIP Protection unit, but presumably some division of the police ought to have capacity and commitments on this. Well.
We're seeing this now. I mentioned to the investigating officer in some high profile murder for higher cases, she has a detailed special force of special Taskforce members that are looking after her and her team. We're see more and more where organizations are creating a protection bubble around the investigators, around their auditors. We're seeing it moving a lot in the private sector. We've see municipalities and metros doing it.
But from a capacity perspective, one looks at Chaltoner. There were stories that he was meant to have been protected because he was investigating the gang Underworld. He was meant to have a close protection detail looking ouk him at all times. That didn't materialize, and if you think about the levels of time in South Africa, there's just not
enough people to offer that kind of protection. We see white life brigades now where the rich and famous can employ these brigades of security officers to protect them from kidnapping and extortion. But when it comes to the actual investigators, there's a reluctance on the part of the state, but also a capacity issue on the part of the states to extend the resources of protection.
Thank you very much, Chad Thomas of IRAS Forensic Investigations