Ballistics expert Captain Laurence Makgotloe has told the Madlanga commission that there were links between the murder case of Vereeniging engineer Armand Swart and the Bramley case in which Swart’s alleged suspects were arrested.
Makgotloe said this while testifying at the commission in Pretoria on Monday, outlining the limited links between both cases.
Makgotloe, who was assigned to investigate Swart’s murder in April 2024, told the commission that he was also involved in the Bramley case and conducted ballistic analysis on exhibits linked to both matters.
He explained that the only confirmed connection existed between the Bramley case and the Vereeniging case, based on ballistic evidence.
“I was aware of this link between the Bramley and Vereeniging cases because we conducted the ballistics analysis on the exhibits for the two cases,” Makgotloe said.
“Thus, I’m not certain whether the investigating officers misconstrued the linkages between those two cases to mean there were links with other cases besides those two cases.”
Makgotloe further stated that he had made no additional linkages between the Swart murder and any other murder cases.
Contract killings
Businessman and suspected drug cartel member Katiso “KT” Molefe and his co-accused, Michael Pule Tau (55), Tiego Floyd Mabusela (47), and Musa Kekana (35) are facing 35 charges, including conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder, and murder.
Central to the state’s case are allegations that Molefe orchestrated a series of contract killings carried out by his co-accused.
The entertainment industry was shocked by some of the killings, particularly the assassination of Oupa “DJ Sumbody” Sefoka in November 2022.
Investigators believe the same high-calibre rifles used in DJ Sumbody’s murder are linked to several other killings, including those of DJ Vintos, real name Hector Buthelezi, and the Vereeniging engineer Swart.
Forensic evidence, including ballistics analysis, allegedly ties the murders to a broader organised crime syndicate operating across Gauteng.
Molefe, who was arrested earlier in 2025, was granted R500 000 bail in October while his co-accused remained behind bars.
On Monday, Makgotloe suggested that the commission’s Witness B and the investigating officer may have misread or misunderstood the ballistic findings when suggesting broader connections to other crimes.
During his testimony, Makgotloe also raised concerns about systemic challenges within the forensic laboratory, warning that errors were likely to continue due to pressure to prioritise quantity over quality of work.
“I can safely say those were the typing errors, and those errors were supposed to be picked up at the reviewing process, but they were not. I cannot state as to what reason, but it amounts to work pressure,” he said.
Shortage of staff
He explained that forensic experts are given limited time to complete statements, regardless of their length.
“We are not typists, and we are given 20 minutes to type a statement regardless of how many pages the statement is. So the possibility of errors will be there.”
According to Makgotloe, the laboratory system does not allow members to review their cases and places greater emphasis on the number of cases processed rather than the quality of work produced.
“We accept those mistakes and we accept correction. Our system at the lab doesn’t accommodate members reviewing their own cases. We do not focus on the quality; we focus on the quantity.
“It is not a good thing, but it is true,” he said, adding that the issue comes from the high volume of cases compared to the limited number of staff.
Makgotloe stressed that the mistakes were unintentional. “It is innocent mistakes, nothing sinister,” he concluded.
