Threats, intimidation, quashing of evidence, ‘suggestion’ of bribes to not oppose bail, and omission of crucial links by the SAPS forensic unit in Pretoria, were some of the challenges mentioned by Witness A who testified at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry on Monday.

Witness A, a detective with the SAPS’s organised crime unit in Gauteng, said that they were no longer safe in their homes and at work, they had to drive around with the docket wherever they went, as a result, specialised teams were deployed to guard detectives in this matter and they were moved to safe houses.

His testimony was held partially in camera, where the public was able to hear his voice but not see his face. This, according to the commission, was done for the safety of the witness.

The witness stated that the investigators began experiencing challenges in court where a police officer alongside other murder-accused suspects made their first appearance at the Vereeniging Magistrate’s Court, for the murder of Armand Swart. 

Swart, an employee of a Vereeniging engineering company, was shot dead after alleged hitmen mistook him for his boss in April 2024. The company Swart worked for had uncovered a 4 650% overpricing on small engineering parts at Transnet.

Witness A said they were shocked as investigators (all five of them who were at the scene) to see the support enjoyed by the murder-accused individuals.

The accused individuals are Warrant Officer Michael Pule Tau, Musa Kekana, and Tiego Floyd Mabusela.

They were later joined by controversial businessman Katiso ‘KT’ Molefe, who was linked as having ordered the hit through cellphone evidenced downloaded from Tau’s phone. Molefe is out on R400,000 bail for the murder of DJ Sumbody.

Witness A stated that during the first court appearance in Vereeniging, the mood was quite tense, and the behaviour of the accused’s supporters posed threats to investigators. 

“We were surprised by the show of support for the accused individuals. The court was packed, more especially, Michael Pule Tau. Some of the people in support of Tau were police officers mostly from Johannesburg Central police station, but they were in civilian clothing,” he stated.

During recess, one of the people was seen trying to take pictures of the five detectives working on the case. This is something that is unacceptable. We reported it and it was taken care of, he said.

They had come to court driving in three different unmarked State vehicles. He said on their way back, some cars belonging to the accused’s supporters ‘tried to drive us off the road’. 

“We communicated and had to stop somewhere. Then we decided to use an alternative route, the Old Vereeniging Road. These vehicles of the supporters continued driving with us, as we moved. This time, they didn’t try to force us off the road,” Witness A said.

They reported the matter to their commander when they got to the office, and they were told to be more careful.

At least four cellphones were recovered from the suspects, one of them a burner phone, which Witness A described as not having an internet connection (a phone that cannot be easily traced).

A rim of a Mercedes-Benz, 15 used cartridges, and a firearm were recovered by the police from the murder suspects when they were arrested following the murder. These would lead to other scenes, one in Bramley — the home of Kekana — and a third scene in Kliprivier, where Mabusela was arrested and more firearms were recovered, according to Witness A.

He said that firearms and used cartridges were taken to the forensic lab in Silverton, because links had to be made to the individuals that had been arrested, because information had been received that they were allegedly involved in multiple murders, the witness said.

He added that when the report came, there was no mention of the analysis of the cartridges, and they could not link the firearms.

Witness A said that the firearms were later taken to the KZN SAPS lab for analysis. 

He also mentioned that they were called to the SAPS head office to brief the National Head of Organised Crime, Major General Richard Shibiri, about the investigation into the murder of Swart. The request was to initially share the information over the phone but they were uncomfortable and preferred to meet in person.

Witness A said Shibiri wanted the investigators to look after themselves, because there was a very dangerous person linked to this matter, called Mswazi (a late taxi boss who was also involved in hits).

“He mentioned to us that there were envelopes (bribes) that were on offer for the suspects to get bail. One for the investigator, one for the magistrate, and one for the prosecutor,” Witness A said. 

He stated that the case was so sensitive that they had to drive around with the docket wherever they went. 

Witness A mentioned a man by the name of Vusi Ndlala, who was not a member of the SAPS, who had told them that Pule would be released on bail, if that fails, he would ‘eliminate’ the investigators.

A threat risk assessment was conducted on the detectives, and was found to be very high, resulting in 10 officers being deployed to ensure their safety day and night. 

The inquiry continues.

gcwalisile.khanyile@inl.co.za

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