An envelope containing a copy of the front page of the Weekend Post was the perceived threat that led to officials from the auditor-general’s office fleeing Nelson Mandela Bay.

The newspaper’s front page, dated October 19, had two stories — one detailing how the National Treasury planned to recall billions of rand spent on the Integrated Public Transport System (IPTS) and the other on the killing of four people in the Bay in one day, including an SMME owner and his teacher friend...