AGE OF ACCOUNTABILITY: Five criminal cases later, Ekurhuleni fires Julius Mkhwanazi

The City of Ekurhuleni on Friday, 18 September, pulled the plug on the tenure of Deputy Chief of Police Julius Mkhwanazi, whose conduct has come under sustained scrutiny in both criminal proceedings and before the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry into Alleged Criminality, Political Interference and Corruption in the Criminal Justice System. 

The City said his termination followed consideration of its internal disciplinary processes, the criminal matters against him and the evidence placed before the commission.

Mkhwanazi, who was responsible for operations and specialised services at the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD), was suspended on 11 November 2025. This was in line with the recommendations of an internal audit investigation into allegations of misconduct, the City said. The City leadership closely monitored the serious allegations emerging from the Madlanga Commission, it added.

The timing of Mkhwanazi’s firing is significant. The decision came a day after the first anniversary of the Madlanga Commission, when its chair, Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga, delivered his starkest assessment yet of the evidence before the inquiry – warning that allegations heard by the commission, if established, would point to the infiltration of state institutions and criminality within South Africa’s criminal justice system.

Precious stones heist

The City’s announcement that it had fired Mkhwanazi came after his appearance with co-accused Keisha-Leigh Stols, Adrian Mackenzie and Kgomotso Makhuba earlier on Friday in the Johannesburg Magistrates’ Court in connection with the alleged theft in Killarney in 2023 of precious stones worth R14-million, one of five separate criminal cases he currently faces.

At the commission, Mkhwanazi’s name has become a recurring thread in evidence concerning the EMPD, with witnesses raising a litany of allegations involving members of the metro police.

A number of the allegations relate to an unlawful memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the metro police department and Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala’s company, CAT VIP Protection Services.

In his evidence before the commission in November 2025, suspended EMPD Chief Jabulani Isaac Mapiyeye testified that the MOU was fraudulent and that the then Brigadier Mkhwanazi did not have the requisite authority to conclude any MOU on behalf of the City.

Murder case adds to City decision

Mkhwanazi’s continued incarceration after being denied bail in a murder case also weighed on the City’s decision. It raised concerns about his prolonged unavailability and whether the internal disciplinary proceedings could be concluded within a reasonable period.

Mkhwanazi and his five co-accused were denied bail in the Brakpan Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, 15 September, in connection with a case in which they face charges of murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances and defeating the ends of justice.

The accused are Mkhwanazi, former EMPD official Stols, suspended EMPD officer Mackenzie, private security company owner Cobus Janse van Rensburg, and police officers Bhekokwakhe Sibande and Juan Maree Eksteen. They have been charged with the murder of Brakpan businessman Emmanuel Mbense.

The murder case is closely intertwined with the commission’s own investigation.

It was the killing of Marius van der Merwe, who testified anonymously before the commission as “Witness D”, that put Mkhwanazi under renewed scrutiny. Van der Merwe’s evidence implicated the suspended EMPD deputy chief in allegations surrounding the murder.

Van der Merwe was killed on 5 December 2025 after giving evidence to the commission.

His death added a particularly grave dimension to the inquiry’s examination of alleged criminal networks operating in and around law enforcement, and placed Mkhwanazi among the officials whose conduct has come under scrutiny in the criminal courts and before the commission.

HR head said to shield Mkhwanazi

More damaging evidence concerning Mkhwanazi emerged in November 2025, when former Ekurhuleni head of employee relations Xolani Nciza testified that repeated attempts to suspend the senior police commander were allegedly thwarted by interference from top management.

Nciza’s evidence raised questions about why disciplinary action against Mkhwanazi had repeatedly failed, despite concerns about his conduct and the allegations swirling around him.

Drawn into this drama was Linda Gxasheka, Ekurhuleni’s suspended head of human resources, who, according to Mapiyeye’s testimony, helped to shield Mkhwanazi from disciplinary action.

On Thursday, 26 February 2026, appearing before the commission, she denied allegations that she had usurped the powers of suspended Mapiyeye. She stated: “I refute the allegations that I supported or participated in the usurpation of powers.”

City ‘suffers reputational damage’

Multiple law enforcement and criminal justice officials have been suspended, dismissed and criminally charged following evidence presented at the Madlanga Commission. Mkhwanazi’s firing highlights how the commission is having an impact before its even finished its work.

In a statement on Friday, City Manager Kagiso Lerutla said the decision followed careful consideration of a detailed submission from the City’s human resources department, the internal disciplinary processes instituted against Mkhwanazi, evidence placed before the commission and the cumulative effect of the criminal matters involving him on the employment relationship.

“The City considered, among other factors, the seriousness of the matters, Mr Mkhwanazi’s seniority within the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department, the connection between the allegations and his official responsibilities, and the resulting impact on the integrity and reputation of the municipality,” the City said. DM