GCIS Treasury has demanded answers from top cop Khehla Sitole after the police splurged more than R100m on shadowy spy equipment that they cannot use – raising the spectre of massive fruitless and wasteful expenditure. News24 revealed that the Police’s Crime Intelligence Division had paid R102m for “precise mobile detection equipment”, also known as “grabbers” – devices capable of intercepting cellphone calls and messages – which have been gathering dust in a warehouse for more than a year. The scandal comes at a time when the police’s budget was slashed by more than R3bln – with the state’s financial position hobbled by the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The budget for the Crime Intelligence Division was cut by R89m for the year to come, Police Minister Bheki Cele told Parliament last month.