Overview
- CCTV from a Meyerton workshop showed Julius Mkhwanazi with EMPD officers seizing copper outside EMPD’s mandate; the whistleblower who supplied it, Jaco Hanekom, was later killed after the officers got bail.
- Spies alleged a 2021–2023 set of MOUs with Cat VIP and Medicare 24 granted surveillance access, allowed blue lights on private cars and even blood draws at roadblocks, with a helicopter offered for only two flight hours a month.
- He said operational plans and signatures were forged to mask the deals, with luxury vehicles registered as municipal assets despite lacking lawful authorization.
- In a separate 2022 case, Spies testified that officers tortured a man and, after calling Mkhwanazi, were told to clean the scene, load the body and dump it in a Nigel dam; IPID is probing and investigators reported death threats.
- Spies added that about 200 Specialized Services members refused fingerprint vetting, the DA says council never approved any EMPD–Cat VIP agreement, and Mkhwanazi is on special leave as suspended chief Jabulani Mapiyeye’s claims about a rogue unit remain before the commission.