Suspended Police Minister Senzo Mchunu is facing serious allegations of attempting to coerce Witness E, an undercover operative, to provide false testimony in his favour ahead of his appearance at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry.

The accusations emerged on Monday during Witness E’s testimony, where he said that Mchunu pressured him about the Political Killings Task Team’s (PKTT) operations, asking him if he knew of any victims of the PKTT or if he had any documents or reports that are damning to the PKTT.

“I informed him that I didn’t know of victims of the PKTT because I have never worked with them. He then said I should look for them or evidence of people who were victimised by the PKTT,” he said.

Witness E testified that Mchunu has been calling him from different numbers since last year, allegedly saying he believes his phone is being monitored when asked why.

In one of the calls Mchunu allegedly dictated a statement to Witness E, telling him to compile it for submission to his lawyers and potential use in Witness E’s testimony. 

He said Mchunu wanted a statement saying crime intelligence provided unlicensed firearms and a stolen car, via a secret service account, to hitmen Jabulani Mdunge and Sibusiso Ncengwa, who killed former ANC youth league secretary general Sindiso Magaqa in 2017. 

Mchunu allegedly also wanted a statement implicating General Dumisani Khumalo, head of crime intelligence, in covering up involvement of crime intelligence members in wrongdoings. The statement allegedly said Khumalo, who led the PKTT from 2018 and became crime intelligence head in 2022, has not acted on information about crime intelligence members’ involvement despite his position.

The witness further said Mchunu wanted him to falsely state they discussed his promotion in 2025, with Mchunu allegedly promising to escalate the matter with SAPS. 

He, however, rejected the request, saying their conversation started in 2024, not 2025 as Mchunu allegedly wanted him to claim.

Co-commissioner Advocate Sandile Khumalo SC suggested Mchunu was encouraging Witness E to provide false testimony, asking: “He was encouraging you to lie to the commission?” Witness E replied: “Yes, I believe so,” adding that Mchunu allegedly promised that he “will be free and happy for the rest of your life” if he made the statement.

He told the commission that he repeatedly lied to Mchunu, telling him he would produce the requested statement, all while knowing he would not. 

On December 11, 2025 he received a call from Mchunu wanting to know if he had finished writing the statement, saying he needed to submit it to his lawyers by noon.

Witness E said at some stage he deliberately missed calls from Mchunu because he had no intention to draft the statement. 

Earlier on he testified that senior KwaZulu-Natal crime intelligence officials targeted him for assassination after he exposed their alleged involvement in the killing of Magaqa.

“They started to target me to be assassinated and even told me that they will never give me any promotion and they want me dead because I am a threat to their careers,” he said.

He approached the Durban High Court for protection against the officials, leading to his enrollment in a witness protection programme granted in 2018.

He testified that Magaqa’s 2017 assassination could have been prevented if KwaZulu-Natal SAPS Crime Intelligence officials had acted on warnings of a plot, saying hired hitmen confided in him about their strategy to take out Magaqa, including bribing senior crime intelligence officials for assistance.

“After hearing about the assassination plot I informed my superiors. I also proposed some steps to prevent the murder or save Magaqa’s life. They didn’t want to listen to me,” he said.

Judge Mbuyiseli Madlanga, chairing the commission, questioned him why he reported the assassination plot to the same superiors he was told will be asked to assist the hitmen.

Witness E explained that “when I got the information I reported to those people who were going to assist but those people at the time they didn’t know that they would be asked to assist”.

He said the hitmen hired to kill Magaqa revealed the equipment used in the killing, including a firearm and a car, were provided by senior officials.

Mchunu’s chief of staff Mthokozisi Nkabinde, also allegedly phoned Witness E to inform that he (Nkabinde) was tasked with probing crime intelligence officials’ conduct,

Witness E said he expressed confusion over Nkabinde’s involvement in investigations but Nkabinde claimed his past work at IPID gave him insight into the case.

 Nkabinde also allegedly mentioned former Minister Bheki Cele and Lieutenant General Khumalo’s possible involvement in Magaqa’s assassination, according to Witness E’s testimony.

“I informed him that the two were not involved,” Witness E said.

Following the establishment of the Madlanga Commission, Mchunu allegedly approached Witness E, requesting his testimony regarding the Magaqa assassination. 

Mchunu allegedly wanted Witness E to implicate the officials involved in the killing, including details about the car and unlicensed firearm used, according to Witness E’s testimony.

Witness E said Mchunu called him in September from his spokesperson Kamogelo Mogotsi’s cell phone, saying he had been instructed to testify and a statement had been drafted for him. 

rapula.moatshe@inl.co.za

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