Deputy national commissioner for crime detection Shadrack Sibiya. Photo: X
Deputy national commissioner for crime detection Shadrack Sibiya told parliament’s ad hoc committee on police corruption on Monday that he had met North West businessman Brown Mogotsi twice but denied any involvement with him on behalf of suspended Police Minister Senzo Mchunu.
“I’ve never sat in on a meeting organised by Brown Mogotsi. He has never called me to say there’s a meeting with the minister [Mchunu] or [Cedrick] Nkabinde [Mchunu’s chief of staff],” Sibiya said on his first day of testimony.
Mogotsi has been accused of acting as a middleman between Mchunu and murder suspect Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala, allegedly exchanging confidential police information for cash that was used to fund ANC delegates and party activities.
In January, KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi accused Sibiya of implementing Mchunu’s directive to disband a task team investigating political killings and removing 121 dockets from the unit to police headquarters.
Mkhwanazi first made the allegations in a July media briefing, which prompted President Cyril Ramaphosa to establish a commission chaired by retired judge Mbuyiseli Madlanga to investigate. The commission has summoned Mogotsi to respond to allegations about his improper involvement in official police matters as a civilian.
Parliament’s ad hoc committee initiated a parallel inquiry to investigate Mkhwanazi’s claims. While testifying before the committee, Mkhwanazi said his relationship with Sibiya had deteriorated over disagreements about the management of the task team.
On Monday, evidence leader Norman Arendse asked Sibiya about WhatsApp messages presented by Crime Intelligence head Dumisani Khumalo at the Madlanga commission, in which Mogotsi allegedly assured Matlala that Sibiya was involved in disbanding the task team.
“This is a discussion between two people that does involve me. I’m not part of this discussion where my name appears between these two people,” Sibiya said.
Sibiya denied any involvement with Matlala, as alleged by Mogotsi in the WhatsApp exchanges, saying he doubted the authenticity of the messages.
He said he had listened to Matlala’s bail application, during which his lawyers claimed his phones had been taken to a private company and tampered with, with messages removed and inserted.
Arendse asked whether Sibiya disputed the authenticity of the texts provided by Khumalo. “Not disputing but I doubt,” said Sibiya, adding that the individual who recovered the texts should be called to testify before the ad hoc committee.
Asked whether he knew Mogotsi, Sibiya said he knew him as an “activist” and had met him twice. He said Mogotsi contacted him to warn of a potential attack by members of the intelligence community and that they met to discuss information Sibiya said he already knew.
Sibiya said, on one occasion, he met Mogotsi in Cape Town, during the ANC’s 8 January anniversary celebrations. He said he was there on official duty as a police officer.
He added that Mogotsi called him shortly after their meeting to say he had forgotten to pay his restaurant bill. Sibiya said he did not settle the bill because he did not know Mogotsi well.
Sibiya also testified that he knew Matlala as a service provider for the South African Police Service (SAPS) and had spoken briefly with him over the phone when Matlala requested a meeting.
“He is well known in the SAPS because he was, at the time, running a hospital of the SAPS at the college,” said Sibiya.
He added that he had met Matlala with his attorney when they visited his office to lodge a complaint about a tender dispute involving a leased building. Sibiya said he agreed to look into the matter and that was the extent of their interaction.
Sibiya, who was appointed by national police commissioner Fannie Masemola in 2023 when Bheki Cele was police minister, said the police structure empowered him, as deputy national commissioner, to act on behalf of the commissioner — including drafting the letter that removed the 121 dockets, which Masemola did not sign off on.
Sibiya said that due to a “weird arrangement”, the political killings task team, established in 2018, was placed under Mkhwanazi and Khumalo when it should have fallen under his department. He argued that the task team should have been under detectives, which is his responsibility.
Sibiya argued there were many task teams “all over the country” which “are not properly monitored nor controlled”, but have access to large budgets, including the political killings one.
“This committee must request for an audit for the overtime claimed by members of this task team since its establishment,” said Sibiya.
He said the task team had a budget of R500 million while he was struggling with limited resources for areas like Westbury, Eldorado Park and Hannover Park, where he received daily videos of shootings.
“I say [the task team] is not helping the country at all,” said Sibiya, adding resources should be sent to the murder and robbery unit where they are needed the most.
The task team operated in secrecy and senior officials were briefed only on a need-to-know basis, he said. He had engaged with the task team through Khumalo when he requested additional detectives.
Sibiya maintained that his relationship with Mchunu was professional and that they had not met before Mchunu was appointed minister of police. He said it was generally understood that when a police minister made a request, it could not easily be refused.
Fe had a close working relationship with Mkhwanazi, although it had soured during the investigation into the murder of hip-hop artist AKA, when they disagreed on how to handle the case. Sibiya said Mchunu later intervened to resolve the conflict, after which he and Mkhwanazi shook hands.
Arendse pointed out that Mkhwanazi had told a different story, saying: “He does not shake hands with criminals.” Sibiya denied this version, saying events had not unfolded that way.
He added that he had invited Mkhwanazi to the provincial excellence awards, which Mkhwanazi had not attended.