IPID probe into EMPD police torture, murder, cover-up at final stage
Suspended EMPD acting chief, Julius Mkhwanazi, admitted to the Madlanga Commission that he went to the Brakpan scene around 3am after receiving a call about an operation that went wrong.
Image: Oupa Mokoena/Independent Newspapers
THE Independent Investigative Directorate’s (IPID) investigation into the torture and murder cover-up, allegedly by Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) officers, is at an advanced stage.
"However, there are certain things that we need to finalise from our side before we hand over the docket to the National Prosecuting Authority,” said IPID spokesperson Lizzy Shuping.
The high-ranking officers, including suspended EMPD Acting Chief Commissioner Julius Mkhwanazi, were named by Marius van der Merwe (Witness D) at the Madlanga Commission for their alleged involvement in the crime.
Van der Merwe was shot dead last Friday, outside his home in Brakpan, weeks after his partial in-camera testimony due to the sensitive nature of his evidence.
In his testimony, Van der Merwe lifted the lid on the robbery suspect’s alleged torture, which included being suffocated with a plastic bag ‘tubing’, resulting in death, and a cover-up on April 15, 2022, in Brakpan. The suspect was a Mozambican.
Van der Merwe also told the Commission that Mkhwanazi arrived at the scene and instructed that the body be dumped either in a mineshaft or a dam to conceal the death.
He said that Mkhwanazi’s instruction was clearly directed at him, and he interpreted it as an expectation for him to dispose of the deceased’s body, which he allegedly did out of fear.
He also told the Commission that he drove the body to Nigel Dam and left it partially submerged. He added that officers went out for drinks afterwards, and he burned his clothes the next morning.
Van der Merwe said that several of the EMPD officers present at the house where a suspect was tortured had long been linked to criminal activity. He stated that he reported the crime to the Hawks and IPID.
Mkhwanazi has since been suspended.
Quizzed about Van der Merwe’s testimony, Mkhwanazi admitted to the commission that he went to the scene around 3am after receiving a call about an operation that went wrong.
Cape Times