Madlanga Commission | Over 41,000 cases stuck in SAPS forensic backlog
Here is a graphic that shows how weapons used in the murders of engineer Armand Swart, Oupa “DJ Sumbody” Sefoka, and Hector “DJ Vintos” Buthelezi are linked to over 20 cases. Ballistic confirmation is still pending.
Image: Kamogelo Moichela/ IOL News
SAPS ballistics expert, Brigadier Mishak Mkhabela, has revealed that about 41,846 criminal cases remain stuck in the forensic pipeline, many hinging on critical ballistic evidence due to lack of staff, while courts continue issuing warrants of arrest.
Testifying before the Madlanga Commission on Monday, Mkhabela painted a picture of a system buckling under pressure — crippled by staff shortages, insufficient resources, and overflowing evidence storage facilities.
“We have repurposed a museum, and even that is full,” he said, referring to the desperate measures taken to store seized firearms.
“In our strong safe, at any given point, I have more than 29,000 firearms each linked to a killing. We only have 42 analysts.”
According to Mkhabela, 41,846 cases were awaiting ballistic analysis, including 29,385 from the national office, with 10,643 still pending in 2025 alone.
The Western Cape accounts for 5,196 cases, KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) for 3,710, and the Eastern Cape for 2,174 — a collective reflection of a deepening backlog that threatened the delivery of justice nationwide.
The scale of the crisis was underscored by a diagram presented to the commission, linking firearms used in the murders of Armand Swart, Oupa “DJ Sumbody” Sefoka, and Hector “DJ Vintos” Buthelezi to over 20 other criminal cases — all awaiting ballistic confirmation.
Mkhabela admitted that the chronic staff shortage and outdated systems have severely compromised investigations, leaving families of victims in limbo and potentially allowing dangerous offenders.
kamogelo.moichela@iol.co.za
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