Court documents uncover secret plot to assassinate Nelson Mandela
A new court case, set to begin Monday (13 March), is expected to uncover a failed plot to assassinate president Nelson Mandela during his 1994 inauguration.
This follows the filing of a lawsuit against the then-Minister of Safety and Security and Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, by former Mandela top cop, Major-General Andre Lincoln.
Lincoln was appointed as head of the presidential investigation task unit in June 1996 with a mandate to investigate organised crime in the Western Cape – specifically suspected member of the Sicilian Mafia, Roberto (Vito) Palazzolo.
During the investigations, Lincoln himself was subsequently arrested on 47 different counts including fraud, drunken driving and theft.
He is now suing for R15 million in damages he suffered when he was “maliciously” criminally charged while investigating top secret police activities. It is expected that part of the evidence he will present will surround the controversial covert police operation, ‘Project Donna’, involving the printing of counterfeit money.
Lincoln is further expected to testify how several of the officers involved in Project Donna were linked to a plot to assassinate Nelson Mandela at his inauguration at the Union Buildings in Pretoria in 1994.
This was confirmed by News24 which reportedly holds a transcript of court proceedings dating back as far as 2002, detailing the Mandela assassination plot. The transcripts, which were obtained from one of Lincoln’s previous appeal cases, refer to a foiled sniper-assassination attempt and concerns that the attempt were never properly investigated.
“It looked as if information was obtained that someone, a sharpshooter, would shoot President Mandela at his inauguration,” noted Peter Viljoen, a former member of the presidential task in the obtained transcripts.
“With the information we got, we established that the firearm to be used, was in a certain office of [the] organised crime [unit].”
Viljoen also noted that he was concerned about the allegations that the Mandela murder plot were never properly investigated.
“I am just as worried and yesterday afternoon I received a call from Commissioner De Beer, our head of detectives. He is just as worried.”
“But maybe the answer is that they didn’t want us to investigate at that time.”
With News24
Loading ...