This has blown the lid on a spy-versus-spy drama within the country's intelligence agencies that pits national police boss General Bheki Cele against those loyal to his predecessor, Jackie Selebi.
This week, the turf war between the police's crime intelligence unit and the Hawks blew into the open following Beeka's assassination and the dramatic manhunt and arrest of Czech fugitive Radovan Krejcir.
The Sunday Times has established that Beeka was part of what is known as a 25(2A) operation, a section of the Criminal Procedure Act relating to undercover operations.
It stipulates that "any law enforcement officer, an official of the state or ... authorised" person engaged in criminal activities is protected from arrest and prosecution.
This may explain why Beeka never spent a day behind bars despite being arrested for alleged racketeering and extortion on several occasions.
Beeka has now emerged as a central figure in the drama. And the Sunday Times can reveal that the primary suspect, Krejcir, listened to explosive phone recordings of Hawks investigators discussing the case against him.
Just two weeks ago, he was visited by senior crime intelligence officers, who gave him the recordings. They included conversations between forensic investigator Paul O'Sullivan and Hawks boss Lieutenant-General Shadrack Sibiya .
A source in crime intelligence said this week: "Every time the Hawks discussed their strategy against Krejcir and information crucial to his case, guys from crime intel were listening in. These recordings made their way to Krejcir, so he could stay one step ahead."
O' Sullivan confirmed on Friday that he was aware of this.
Hawks spokesman Colonel McIntosh Polela, however, confirmed claims that Krejcir's money had bought him favours within the SAPS and the Hawks.
"I said that he has a bottomless pit of cash that he's extended to people he wants favours from, and that includes some of our members," said Polela.
He said he was "not at liberty to divulge" Beeka's intelligence-gathering work.
Krejcir has previously evaded arrest despite being directly linked - in a number of Sunday Times exposés - to several high-profile murders, including strip club boss Lolly Jackson and German tycoon Uwe Gemballa.
Just last week, Krejcir's doctor, Marian Tupy, was given a suspended sentence for fraud after he falsified medical records saying that Krejcir had cancer. Krejcir was paid out over R4-million on a life policy with Liberty Life as a result.
The Sunday Times can today also reveal that:
Krejcir is being held at the Johannesburg central police's high-risk detention centre after his arrest on Thursday and is due to appear in court tomorrow;
Beeka's connections to the murky world of drugs saw him interacting with foreign intelligence agencies, including the FBI and Scotland Yard; and
He was once a low-level informer for the ANC's armed wing, but some party bosses were uncomfortable as he was a "drug pedlar".
Cele's spokesman, Major-General Nonkululeko Mbatha, refused to be drawn into the allegations, saying: "There is a process and investigation under way and every possible avenue is being probed."
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