National Commissioner of Police Gen Fannie Masemola says his deputy Lt-Gen Shadrack Sibiya supported Police Minister Senzo Mchunu’s call for the immediate disbandment of the KwaZulu-Natal SAPS political killings task team (PKTT).
Masemola was speaking on Tuesday during the fifth day of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into criminality, political interference and corruption. The commission’s public hearings are taking place at the Brigitte Mabandla Justice College in Pretoria.
The commission of inquiry is chaired by retired Constitutional Court Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga.
During his testimony on Monday, Masemola told the commission’s chief evidence leader Adv Terry Motau SC that on March 6 2025 there was a meeting held in Cape Town to discuss the work of the PKTT and Mchunu’s disbandment letter of December 31 2024. Mchunu is currently on special leave.
Meeting to disband task team
Present at the meeting was Masemola, Mchunu, Sibiya, deputy national police commissioner for policing Lt-Gen Tebello Mosikili, national head of crime intelligence Lt-Gen Dumisani Khumalo, Mchunu’s chief of staff Cedrick Nkabinde, and other senior police officials.
Khumalo is also the project leader of the PKTT.
Masemola told the commission that during the meeting, he and Mosikili made a proposal on the winding down of the PKTT instead of an immediate disbandment.
He said he and Mosikili said the dockets of the PKTT should be sent to KZN police commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.
“Sibiya and Nkabinde were against the proposed plans. They wanted an immediate disbandment of the PKTT. Sibiya and Nkabinde said the PKTT dockets must go back to their police stations of origin,” said Masemola.
Yesterday, Masemola made mention of a “concerned party” who came to see him. The person told him that attempted murder-accused and Gauteng tenderpreneur Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala might be involved in the kidnapping of businessman Jerry Boshoga. Boshoga was kidnapped in November 2024.
Boshoga kidnapping link
“The concerned party said to me that General Sibiya cannot investigate Boshoga’s kidnapping because he is a close friend of Matlala and they work together. They said Matlala is one of my deputies due to his closeness with Sibiya. And that I am just not aware of it,” said Masemola.
“I assigned the national head of crime intelligence Lt-Gen Dumisani Khumalo to investigate Boshoga’s kidnapping,” said Masemola.
He said after police investigations into Boshoga’s kidnapping, Matlala became a person of interest.
He said on December 6 2024 a search and seizure operation was conducted at Matlala’s house. The operation was done by members of the Gauteng organised crime unit, assisted by 10 PKTT members.
Masemola said the police went to search for Boshoga at Matlala’s place. Boshoga was not found.
He told the commission that on January 16 2025, he and Khumalo informed Mchunu on information they received that Sibiya is involved and associated with criminal syndicates.
Masemola is yet to elaborate whether the information on Sibiya is based on allegations or facts.
Second witness
Masemola, who is the commission’s second witness, started with his testimony on Monday.
He is currently testifying at the commission on Tuesday.
Mkhwanazi was the commission’s first witness. He concluded his testimony last week Friday after testifying for three days.
In his explosive media briefing on July 6 2025, Mkhwanazi said Matlala was awarded a huge SAPS tender. The tender, awarded in 2024, was worth more than R360-million.
Masemola cancelled the tender on May 13 2025. That was a day before Matlala was arrested for the attempted murder of his ex-lover, actress and influencer Tebogo Thobejane.
Cat Matlala and co-accused
In his current case, Matlala (49) is charged alongside his wife Tsakani (36), two alleged hitmen, Musa Kekana (35) and Tiego Floyd Mabusela (47), and Nthabiseng Nzama (23) for the attempted murder of Thobejane.
Nzama is Mabusela’s daughter.
The five accused are facing various charges. These include conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder, fraud, and money laundering. The charges are in connection with the alleged hit on Thobejane.
Tsakani and Nzama are out on R20, 000 and R10, 000 bail, respectively. Kekana and Mabusela abandoned their bail applications. They remain in police custody.
Matlala was denied bail last week by the Alexandra Magistrate’s Court. He remains in police custody at the Kgosi Mampuru correctional centre in Pretoria.
The case of the five accused returns to the Alexandra Magistrate’s Court on October 7 2025.
