National Director of Public Prosecutions Bulelani Ngcuka said the decision to investigate Deputy President Jacob Zuma was taken after careful consideration of all the implications of such a probe.

The probe was started after the Scorpions received an encrypted fax of the alleged attempt to solicit a R500 000-a-year bribe;

A whistle-blower implicated French arms company boss Alain Thetard, Schabir Shaik and Zuma and this, together with evidence from an auditing firm around irregular factors, suggested reasonable suspicion;

Authorisation for the probe was done in a way that would ensure Zuma's identity remained protected;

The Scorpions avoided using Zuma's name when they asked a judge in chambers for a search warrant to raid Shaik and Thomson-CSF, instead referring to him as "a high-ranking government official, called Mr X"; and

Zuma was specifically excluded from raids on his homes and offices.

With acknowledgement to the Sunday Times.