Suspended deputy national police commissioner Shadrack Sibiya resigned from the South African Police Service (SAPS) during disciplinary proceedings against him, ending his career in the police service while facing criminal charges and allegations of corruption.
The SAPS confirmed on Monday that Sibiya’s employment had terminated with immediate effect from 12 October 2026, after his legal representative tendered his resignation shortly after the disciplinary hearing began.
“The disciplinary hearing against Lieutenant-General Sibiya sat this morning, during which his legal representative tendered his resignation immediately after the disciplinary proceedings had commenced,” the SAPS said in a statement.
The SAPS said his departure would be regarded as a dishonourable discharge because disciplinary proceedings were pending when he resigned.
“As the former senior officer had an ongoing disciplinary case against him at the time of his resignation, his departure from the Service is therefore regarded as a dishonourable discharge,” the statement said.
Sibiya was arrested on 21 September and faces five criminal charges in the Randburg Magistrate’s Court, including rape, human trafficking and the sexual grooming of a child.
The state alleges that he raped an 18-year-old woman at a Sandton hotel and groomed a 16-year-old girl between May and August 2026. His bail application is ongoing.
Separately, Sibiya has been implicated in allegations of corruption and interference in police operations before the Madlanga commission.
These include allegations that he received cash and improper gifts, including 20 impalas, from alleged underworld figures, leaked confidential police information and irregularly removed 121 case dockets from the Political Killings Task Team.
Sibiya’s departure follows a turbulent career in the police service. He was dismissed in 2015 over his alleged role in the illegal rendition of Zimbabwean nationals. He challenged the dismissal. The Labour Court subsequently ordered his reinstatement after finding that the dismissal had been procedurally unfair.
After leaving national policing, Sibiya was appointed by former Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba in 2016 to lead the city’s Group Forensic and Investigation Services, which investigates corruption and misconduct in the municipality.
He returned to national policing in 2023 and was promoted to lieutenant-general, serving as deputy national commissioner for crime detection. He was later suspended in 2025 after KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi accused him of complicity with criminal networks.
Sibiya will return to the Randburg Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, 13 October, for his bail application in the sexual offences case.