121 case files related to political murders have been returned to the Province’s Political Killings Task Team
A total of 121 case files tied to political murders in KwaZulu-Natal have been returned to the province’s political killings Task Team(PKTT) following claims of interference by senior officials.
Following substantiated claims of political interference initiated by provincial police commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi against police minister Senzo Mchunu. According to Mkhwanazi, Mchunu disbanded the task team in March 2025 and moved the dockets to SAPS headquarters in Pretoria, allegedly to delay investigations into suspects such as businessman Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala and political operative Brown Mogotsi. Reports suggest there is forensic and digital evidence, including WhatsApp messages, supporting these claims.
Related to returning of dockets, National Police Commissioner, Fannie Masemola also brief the media on the sidelines of the Interpol conference in Cape Town.
“This docket that are carried by the Political Task Team are not easy and simple because they involve many people. It’s won’t be easy to investigate them, we don’t expect arrest so soon in those dockets. Nevertheless cases will be solved related to them,” Masemola says.
Since its establishment in 2018, the PKTT has made 436 arrests and achieved 128 convictions, 29 of which resulted in life sentences, out of more than 600 cases related to political violence in the province. Mounting public pressure and the launch of the Madlanga Commission-led by retired Constitutional Court Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga to probe the alleged interferenc prompted the reinstatement of the case files.
President Cyril Ramaphosa, who placed Mchunu on special leave, called the matter a “serious threat to national security.” While an internal police report downplayed Mkhwanazi’s accusations, citing only procedural shortcomings, the families of victims are still calling for justice. The return of the dockets is being regarded as a key move toward restoring accountability in the province’s ongoing political violence crisis.
About The Author
