Hawks Sergeant and Tembisa Hospital Official Break Down in Tears in Court Over Bribery Charge

• Hawks Sergeant Papi Tsie and Tembisa Hospital official Zacharia Chisele appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court
• The duo were arrested after allegedly attempting to bribe a Hawks investigator to not prosecute Chisele
• Social media users weighed in on the appearance of the two men and their emotional response to the allegations

Briefly News journalist Byron Pillay has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He spent 10 years working for the Northern Natal Courier before transitioning to online journalism.

GAUTENG – A Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI/ Hawks) sergeant broke down in tears in court, sparking annoyed comments online from South Africans.

Sergeant Papi Tsie and a hospital official, Zacharia Chisele, appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court on 2 December 2025. The pair face corruption charges related to the rampant looting at the Tembisa Provincial Hospital.

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They were arrested after allegedly attempting to bribe an investigator who was probing the corruption scandal at the hospital.

Corruption accused get emotional in court

During his appearance in the magistrate’s court, Sergeant Tsie broke down in tears as the prosecutor detailed the charges against him. Chisele, who is an operations manager at Tembisa Hospital, also started crying in the dock.

They also both told the court that they did not have the money to pay bail, even before the State had proposed an amount. They were eventually both granted R5,000 bail each.

What are the men charged with?

Tsie and Chisele were arrested after they allegedly tried to bribe a Hawks investigator with R100,000. They allegedly gave the Hawks officer the money in exchange for Chisele to avoid any prosecution in an ongoing investigation into the looting at the hospital.

Chisele was already being investigated by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) at the time for alleged receiving unlawful payments from service providers at the hospital. The payments were allegedly received between January 2020 and September 2023.

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Both men were unaware that the investigator was conducting an undercover operation and planned to arrest them once the money was handed over.

South Africans react to court appearance

Social media users weighed in on the court appearance, with many showing no sympathy for the men.

@acedelastakes said:

“Bribe 100k, bail R5k. Make it make sense.”

@Lejwemotho added:

“He pays a R100k bribe but gets R5k bail. It’s nice in Mzansi.”

@Manikipi noted:

“Taking bribes for a solid three years without consequences.”

@James30872096 urged:

“Please protect the investigator.”

@MafambaT said:

“Crocodile tears. He must face the music.”

@morwa_koma stated:

“Tears of criminals mean nothing.”

Herman Mashaba questions why Hangwana Maumela hasn't been arrested

As more arrests are made in relation to the Tembisa Hospital looting saga, Herman Mashaba questioned why Hangwani Morgan Maumela remained a free man.

Briefly News reported that Maumela has been implicated in the widespread looting of over R2 billion at Tembisa Hospital.

South Africans weighed in on the ActionSA leader's question, sharing their thoughts on the entire situation.

Source: Briefly News