A lawyer briefly interrupted former police chief Jackie Selebi's corruption trial on Thursday when he said he wanted to serve papers on a witness.

State officials in the High Court in Johannesburg responded angrily to efforts to serve papers on tax dodger Billy Rautenbach, saying court proceedings were in motion.

Representatives of the two parties went outside to discuss the matter. Shortly after, Rautenbach, dressed in a grey suit, took the stand. He testified of a meeting in Johannesburg between his lawyer James Tidmarsh, convicted drug trafficker Glenn Agliotti and Selebi about investigations into Rautenbach.

"The meeting took place on 19 April, 2005. After the meeting, Tidmarsh came to the DRC [Democratic Republic of Congo] where I was. He came to greet me and said he met the commissioner of police and they discussed my case.

Rautenbach, who lives in Zimbabwe, spent almost a decade on the run before entering into a plea agreement with the NPA on tax evasion charges on 16 September 16 days before the start of Selebi's trial.

Under the deal, Rautenbach, as a director of SA Botswana Hauliers, agreed to pay a fine of R40-million on 326 counts of fraud.

Convicted drug trafficker Glenn Agliotti testified Rautenbach paid him $100 000 (about R743 500) as an alleged bribe for Selebi to assist him with his run-ins with the law.

Agliotti said Selebi, who was also president of international police body Interpol, was to see whether there were any international warrants out for the then fugitive Rautenbach.

Selebi is being tried on a count of corruption and another of defeating the ends of justice in connection with at least R1.2-million he allegedly received from Agliotti, Rautenbach and others in return for favours.