Question NW935 to the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development
02 October 2024 - NW935
Kgobisa-Ngcaba, Ms K to ask the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development
Whether, with reference to the ongoing monitoring of the implementation and effectiveness of the Regulation of Interception of Communications and Provision of Communication-related Information Act, Act 70 of 2002 (RICA), any natural or juristic persons have been (a) investigated, (b) charged and (c) convicted for offences under the RICA Act; if not, what is the position in each case; if so, what is the total number of (i) cases investigated, (ii) persons charged, (iii) charges brought, (iv) convictions, (v) acquittals, (vi) imprisonment sentences handed down and (vii) fines handed down for every year since the implementation of the Act?
Reply:
a) The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) does not have an investigative capacity to investigate criminal matters, which includes alleged contraventions of the RICA Act, nor is the NPA mandated to do so. Alleged contraventions of the RICA Act are reported to the South African Police Service who are mandated to conduct the necessary investigations. The NPA, therefore is not able to provide information on the matters investigated.
The following data was extracted from the Electronic Case Management System (ECMS) where court cases which reflects as prosecutions in terms of the RICA Act are captured on an integrated system between the South African Police Service (SAPS), the NPA and the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development:
b) The total number of persons charged is displayed in the table below which reflects the new enrolled cases in court:
|
Number of Cases |
|
|
Calendar Years |
Total Charged (b) |
|
2018 |
12 |
|
2019 |
9 |
|
2020 |
10 |
|
2021 |
21 |
|
2022 |
8 |
|
2023 |
13 |
|
2024 |
13 |
|
Total Charged (b) |
86 |
c) The number of persons, both natural and juristic persons, convicted is displayed below:
|
Total Persons Convicted and Sentenced (c) |
69 |
|
2018 |
10 |
|
2019 |
5 |
|
2020 |
8 |
|
2021 |
18 |
|
2022 |
6 |
|
2023 |
13 |
|
2024 |
9 |
The number of persons, both natural and juristic persons, acquitted on charges under the Act, is:
2 x Acquitted in 2018
4 x Acquitted in 2019
2 x Acquitted in 2020
3 x Acquitted in 2021
2 x Acquitted in 2022
0 x Acquitted in 2023
4 x Acquitted in 2024
The following breakdown of sentence information has only been captured since 2021. The available data indicates that a total of 19 sentences involving direct imprisonment were imposed:
2 x Direct imprisonment sentences in 2021
6 x Direct imprisonment sentences in 2022
3 x Direct imprisonment sentences in 2023
8 x Direct imprisonment sentences in 2024
The number of sentences involving fine options since 2019 amount to 4.
3 x Sentences with a fine option in 2023
1 x Sentence with a fine option in 2024