Business is spearheading a process to digitise the forensic analysis capabilities of the National Prosecuting Authority's investigative arm, the Investigating Directorate (ID) — a move that could see the prosecuting body outsourcing less of this work to specialised firms. It could also speed up the prosecution of high-profile state capture culprits and others accused of financial malfeasance.
At a meeting of President Cyril Ramaphosa, selected ministers and CEOs representing 115 companies to discuss how to fight crime, fix rail and ports, and end load-shedding, it was announced that business had set up a special purpose vehicle (SPV) to enhance the NPA's digital and forensic data capacity.
Remgro CEO and co-lead of the crime and corruption workstream Jannie Durand told Business Times the SPV would help the ID, which is in the process of being given full investigating powers through an amendment bill now before parliament.
“The partnership is about providing specialised skills, expertise and sustainable capacity with a specific focus on digital, forensic and data expertise. The support provided will be demand-driven and aligned to NPA strategic priorities,” Durand said.
Forensics technology solutions leader at PwC Junaid Amra said digital forensic analysis was now the cornerstone of forensic investigations and “you cannot do thorough investigations without it”.
With e-discovery, we put all the data in, complete with voice recordings, and reduce it to text. We are using AI that can read millions of pages in a few seconds
— Junaid Amra, PwC
“In general, with all crimes we investigate ... everyone in their personal and corporate capacities has a digital footprint on their phones, laptops and other digital devices. All of these have a lot of information on them,” said Amra.
He said digital forensic analysis had the capability to search more documents within a shorter time than if done in hard copy.
“All of these crimes leave digital footprints because they are all done electronically in some form. In the past, there would be paperwork that is physically signed but now much of this happens digitally.”
Amra said artificial intelligence was also being enlisted to help with digital forensic analysis, especially when investigators have to peruse millions of documents.
“In the past five or six years, we have seen a lot in e-discovery. We have used it on investigations where there are huge volumes of data — sometimes exceeding 10-million digital documents. In the old days, you would print them, paginate them and compare notes. But with e-discovery, we put all the data in, complete with voice recordings, and reduce it to text. Then when you search for a particular type of information, it pulls up every document and page that contains that. We are even using AI that can read millions of pages in a few seconds,” Amra said.
Sharon van Rooyen, forensics and integrity services leader at EY Africa, said digital forensic skills were essential for identifying, processing and analysing electronically stored information, and could have a significant impact on an investigation regardless of its stage.
“This expertise allows for faster investigation timelines and for identifying crucial evidence that may have otherwise been missed or may have been altered or destroyed. Without these skills, preserving and analysing this evidence would be challenging, making it harder to build a strong case,” she said.
Digital forensic analysis proved crucial in expediting investigations and case closures in high-profile matters including the Steinhoff and VBS Mutual Bank fraud investigations and other cases emerging out of the Zondo commission, she said.
While those behind the collapse of Steinhoff are still to be prosecuted in South Africa, former CEO Markus Jooste, the main culprit, has been indicted by a German court and faces five counts of accounting fraud committed between 2011 and 2014 at various subsidiaries of the company.
Other high-profile fraud and corruption matters already before South African courts include the prosecution of former Transnet boss Brian Molefe and others related to a locomotive tender; former Eskom CEO Matshela Koko, related to the sale of Optimum Coal mine to the Guptas; and ex-Eskom CFO Anoj Singh, for questionable payments made to the Guptas.
Executives who oversaw an accounting scandal at sugar maker Tongaat Hulett have also been indicted.
Asked how much business was putting into the SPV, Durand said they were working with the government to determine the scope and budgets of the project.
“The partnership is not about providing funding support. The NPA has the required political and budgetary support from government. It will be more of providing resources.”
He said the SPV would open channels of dialogue between business and the NPA to determine the level of help required by the prosecuting authority in executing its work. “The SPV will ensure a single point of entry between the NPA and business, while observing the NPA’s independence at all times.”
NPA spokesperson Bulelwa Makeke said they were at the beginning of the partnership with business, but plans and processes to operationalise the mechanism will be put in place after the ID bill has been passed into law.
Business4SA co-chair Martin Kingston said business recognises that South Africa is in a crisis when it comes to energy, logistics and fighting crime and corruption. The private sector, he said, has opted to help find solutions.
“We need to arrest the crisis. If we address those three areas, we think we can create a platform for sustainable, inclusive economic growth. Without doing that we can’t. Our estimate is that those three contribute about 3% to GDP growth. Without consistent growth of more than 3% per annum, we are going to see increasing unemployment rather than arresting the unemployment problems.”
Releasing his six-part final report, state capture commission chair Raymond Zondo revealed that 1,438 people had been implicated by the evidence of more than 300 witnesses over the four years the commission sat.
The NPA announced in 2022 that it had established a task force to co-ordinate its response to the recommendations and findings made by the Zondo commission. It said the task force would be headed by deputy national director of public prosecutions Rodney de Kock and include the Assets Forfeiture Unit and the Special Commercial Crimes Unit. The Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigations (the Hawks) would be represented in meetings.
“The task force’s main focus is to ensure a co-ordinated response to the work to be undertaken, to look at resources and help in expediting the investigation and successful prosecution of the matters.
“The implicated individuals and entities have either been matched to existing cases investigated by the ID or DPCI, or new cases have been identified that need to be opened. The aim is to have a common, complete list of cases which can be monitored and prioritised,” the NPA said.
