News24 reports that the Director for Public Prosecutions (DPP) in the Western Cape has decided not to criminally prosecute anyone for the deadly 2018 explosion at the Rheinmetall Denel Munition (RDM) factory in Somerset West.
In a letter sent to the legal representative of the families of the eight people who were killed in the blast, Western Cape DPP head, advocate Nicolette Bell, said representations received were carefully considered, but “I have decided not to institute any prosecution in the matter." The Department of Employment and Labour established a Section 32 inquiry in May 2021 to probe the blast, which occurred in September 2018. In its report, the inquiry detailed several contraventions, including a "failure to conduct the risk assessment when installing a new iris valve, which is deemed as the modification by the employer." Inquiry chairperson Mphumzi Dyulete recommended criminal prosecution, saying: "The incident was caused by an act of omission of criminal nature on the part of Rheinmetall Denel Munition (Pty) Ltd, as represented by Norbert Schultze, the chief executive officer at the time of the incident". During the inquiry, witnesses testified about structural shortcomings, defective designs, as well as unnecessary overtime, even when there were no large orders.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Marvin Charles at News24
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