Booze, gangsters and an infiltrated wedding - Palazzolo probe 'rumours'
Cape Town - An intelligence operative hand-picked by former president Nelson Mandela to head up an elite investigative unit says a smear campaign against him included rumours about him getting drunk and smashing bottles against walls in posh clubs.
This in the presence of some of Cape Town's most notorious underworld kingpins, including Cyril Beeka and Yuri "the Russian" Ulianitski, both of whom have since been murdered.
"I was dealing with a bunch of people who were seasoned gangsters," Major-General Andre Lincoln testified in the Western Cape High Court on Tuesday.
He said others said to be friends of his, but who were actually under investigation, included former gang boss Rashied Staggie and controversial Moroccan bouncer Hussein ait Taleb.
Lincoln denied he had drunkenly smashed bottles against walls, allegations made by a former colleague, saying no club would have tolerated such behaviour.