
Viewfinder’s Police Accountability Tracker is an interface to the Independent Police Investigative Directorate's (IPID) database of more than 47,000 complaints registered against the police between April 2012 and March 2020. Users can use the filters to home in on any police station for an overview of cases registered there. Users can also locate any individual case for a "progress report", as at March 2020. The data demonstrates that police officers implicated in violent crimes routinely escape accountability.

Viewfinder exposes how underfunding, State Capture and statistical manipulation at IPID allowed violent criminals in the South African Police Service escape accountability.
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In January 2020, Athlone police Sergeant Giovanni Gabriels led a team of constables in a joint operation with the army. At the time, he already had several watchdog findings for assault against him, and he was on a final written warning. Days after the operation, one of the men arrested, 36-year-old Adam Isaacs, died in
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The South African Police Service (SAPS) has found Athlone station commander Colonel Mark Adonis guilty of misconduct for failing to act on torture and murder allegations against officers on his staff. He was given a “verbal warning”, according to former police commissioner General Khehla Sitole, who was responding to a parliamentary question. A conviction of
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Are you a mid-career journalist who wants to take your reporting on topical, public interest issues in South Africa to new heights? Viewfinder is offering a fellowship for reporters to investigate and then produce impact-driven journalism on accountability failures in the country. We are particularly interested in exposing abuses of power or inexcusable failures by
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IPID's position on the history and extent of statistical manipulation has been inconsistent. Days before presenting its annual report to Parliament, management revises it again. Meanwhile, calls for IPID to account continue to mount.
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A data analysis confirms that IPID cases are completed near statistical reporting deadlines. Whistleblowers alleged many such cases were poorly investigated.
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Pressed for time? Read these key takeaways for a concise summary of what Viewfinder's investigation of the cover-up at IPID found. Also, you can access all the most explosive whistleblower leaks from our investigation here.
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Viewfinder exposes how underfunding, State Capture and statistical manipulation at IPID allowed violent criminals in the South African Police Service escape accountability.
Read MoreGreat SA investigative journalism opportunity at @viewfinderjourn https://twitter.com/viewfinderjourn/status/1557636792177795072
Are you a mid-career journalist who wants to to take your reporting to the next level? The Viewfinder 2022 Accountability Journalism Fellowship could be just what you're looking for! Find out more and apply here: http://viewfinder.org.za/viewfinder-2022-accountability-journalism-fellowship/
#InvestigativeJournalism
Are you a mid-career journalist who wants to to take your reporting to the next level? The Viewfinder 2022 Accountability Journalism Fellowship could be just what you're looking for! Find out more and apply here: http://viewfinder.org.za/viewfinder-2022-accountability-journalism-fellowship/
#InvestigativeJournalism