Gauteng Organised Crime Unit officer Fannie Nkosi’s testimony shed light on deep-seated issues within the police force, revealing cosy relationships between officers and businessmen.
Image: Oupa Mokoena/Independent Newspapers
The recent testimonies at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry have exposed a culture where senior police officials allegedly maintain close, compromising financial ties with criminal syndicates.
Evidence shared with the commission this week by Gauteng Organised Crime Unit officer Fannie Nkosi suggested senior police officers are implicated in colluding with an alleged criminal cartel, trading confidential information for gifts and cash.
Nkosi's testimony highlighted a specific instance where businessman Ze Nxumalo, who opened a case against blogger Musa Khawula, partly funded the police operation to track Khawula.
Both Nxumalo and ANC secretary Fikile Mbalula complained about Khawula’s social media posts, which they found offensive.
According to Nkosi, Nxumalo partly covered costs for six police officers to attend a Kroonstad concert as part of the operation to arrest Khawula. These costs included three VIP tickets (R1,000 each) and three general admission tickets (R200 each).
Nkosi's testimony implied Nxumalo was effectively leading the operation, including forwarding a copy of the October 2023 arrest warrant to Nkosi and stating that Khawula contravened the Cyber Act.
Nkosi has been accused of being a middleman between suspended SAPS deputy national commissioner Shadrack Sibiya and alleged cartel figures Vusimuzi "Cat" Matlala and Katiso "KT" Molefe.
Nkosi allegedly collected a package suspected to contain cash meant for Sibiya from Molefe's residence on November 27, 2024. The commission has seen CCTV footage showing a white BMW, linked to Sibiya's office, allegedly driven by Nkosi.
Sibiya testified at the commission last month, dismissing allegations about the BMW. He stated the vehicle was not assigned to him and therefore could not have been under his control during the alleged incident.
The commission heard Nkosi admit that, as a middleman, he facilitated the purchase of impalas for Sibiya at Matlala's expense.
Sibiya testified he told Nkosi he was not interested in impalas, mentioning they die fast and upkeep costs were too high. He had previously spent around R12,000 a month on them.
Sibiya told the commission he refused impalas from Matlala, saying he would not accept gifts from a service provider and consequently, none were delivered to his plot.
Nkosi had also shared confidential police information with businessman Steve Motsumi regarding chrome theft suspects in Mooinooi, North West Province, before the suspects' court appearance. The document in question stated that police were still tracking the potential buyer of the chrome.
Nkosi's ties with businessman Phehello Mthakathi are notable, given Mthakathi's connection to the alleged murderer of Arman Swart, a Vereeniging engineer, and his access to key CCTV footage of the April 17, 2024, murder scene just four days later.
Swart was allegedly killed by mistake; some testimonies suggest the actual target was a whistle-blower who exposed a company linked to Molefe for overpricing in a Transnet tender.
Nkosi said Mthakathi sent him the Swart murder scene video, but he did not discuss it with him, seeing no immediate need to do so.
Suspended Organised Crime Unit head, Major-General Richard Shibiri, recently admitted to receiving R70,000 payment from Matlala in September 2024, but maintained that the money was a personal loan to repair his son’s vehicle.
Bank records contradicted his version, revealing that Shibiri and his son had over R100,000 in their accounts at the time. This led the commission to question why a loan was necessary.
Evidence showed that shortly after receiving the money, Shibiri spent approximately R19,500 at Gucci and R3,000 at Louis Vuitton in Sandton.
Shibiri stated he repaid the loan in full by December 2024, partly by selling cattle. However, the commission highlighted that the repayment occurred only after police raids were conducted at Matlala’s properties.
While Shibiri insists the funds were for car repairs, Matlala's recorded statements suggested they were intended for alcohol for a family “thanksgiving” celebration.
Shibiri was suspended in February 2025 following these and other allegations of corruption and interference in criminal investigations.
Matlala secured a R360-million SAPS contract through his Medicare24 company to provide health services while simultaneously offering financial "favours" to the officers overseeing those areas.
Nkosi, also accused of being the go-between for both Shibiri and Sibiya and facilitating links to Matlala, contradicted Shibiri’s testimony by revealing that he forwarded payment screenshots to Shibiri.
Nkosi stated that Matlala originally sent him the screenshots as “feedback” regarding a complaint about non-payment for a government contract.
Nkosi claimed he shared the documents because Shibiri had a “particular interest” in the matter after Matlala had previously complained to him about payment delays.
He said Matlala often complained to both Shibiri and suspended Sibiya when SAPS payments were delayed.
The commission has also heard allegations that Matlala provided financial favours to various top police officials, including a claimed R500,000 payoff to former leadership and sponsoring ANC delegate travel.
Crime expert Andy Mashaile said this shows that the organised crime networks want to control and neutralise policing and run their businesses effectively, without being monitored.
Mashaile said this would allow them to run their operations without any obstruction, including arrests, prosecution and convictions.
“It is against that background that figures such as Mr Matlala and others would go all out to ensure they capture the criminal justice cluster, from the arresting police officers, investigators, up to prosecutors,” he said.
A political analyst, Sandile Swana, said this shows South Africa is a ‘mafia state’, adding that cases like the Phala Phala farm scandal (involving President Cyril Ramaphosa) signify that there is a relationship between criminals and state actors.
Swana added that organised crime often works with state actors, including politicians, elected public representatives, mayoral committees, managers, station commanders, and police officers, including detectives, to sabotage cases.
“The culture of sabotaging court cases is well established in South Africa. The police system in South Africa is aligned with organised crime,” he said.
Swana added that criminals have also taken advantage of the accountability crisis, which is compromised by political interference, corruption, and systemic weakness.
Nkosi, who is accused of being a conduit between Sibiya and Matlala and Molefe, admitted that he acted as an intermediary, allegedly collecting large sums of cash from Matlala on behalf of Sibiya.
Despite Sibiya's claims of limited contact, Nkosi testified to frequent office visits and close cooperation with Matlala.
It was previously testified that Matlala paid Sibiya between R500,000 and R1 million monthly in cash after receiving payments for SAPS tenders.
Sibiya himself testified that Matlala funded a Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL) for another top cop, Hilda Senthumule. Senthumule has since denied this and is pursuing legal action against Sibiya for defamation.
Other senior cops in Matlala’s circle include Major-General Lesetja Senona, the head of the Hawks in KwaZulu-Natal, who has been barred from his duties following allegations that he helped Matlala secure a R360 million SAPS tender. Head of Forensics Services, Brigadier Rachel Matjeng, also admitted during her testimony to receiving money and gifts from Matlala since 2019, which she described as a “girlfriend allowance”. She also confessed to requesting over R100,000 from him.
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