"Cat" Matlala Drops Bombshell: Claims of Bribes Paid to Former Police Minister Cele
Pretoria – In a dramatic turn of events, controversial tenderpreneur Vusimusi “Cat” Matlala has made explosive allegations against former police minister Bheki Cele, claiming he made substantial cash payments to the minister in exchange for assistance with police harassment and the return of confiscated firearms. Matlala made these claims while testifying on Wednesday before the parliamentary ad hoc committee investigating allegations of police corruption, as initially reported by KwaZulu-Natal’s Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi in a press briefing back in July.
Matlala, who is currently on trial for the alleged attempted murder of Muvhango actress Tebogo Thobejane, detailed a series of alleged encounters with Cele, painting a picture of a quid pro quo relationship that ultimately soured.
According to Matlala's testimony, the initial contact with Cele stemmed from his desire to resolve issues he was experiencing with police raids on his property and the confiscation of his weapons. "I explained to minister Cele that the police had raided my property, confiscated my firearms and devices without a warrant and intended to arrest me over a technicality regarding a spare key for a firearm safe," Matlala stated. He further claimed that Cele informed him he was caught in a "Zulu war" or a "big dispute" between factions within the police force.
To resolve the issue, Matlala claims Cele instructed him to withdraw the court proceedings he had initiated against the police over alleged harassment and raids on his properties. "I gave my attorneys the instructions to withdraw the application. At this meeting, Cele then called Lieutenant General Dumisani Khumalo [whom I believed to be in charge of the operation] and instructed him that I was ‘not fighting with you guys’ and was not friends with Lieutenant General [Shadrack] Sibiya, as they thought."
Matlala alleges that Cele then advised him that he could retrieve his firearms from the police station upon returning to Pretoria. "I went to the police station on 31 December, and my firearms were indeed returned," Matlala confirmed, reading from his prepared statement.
The tenderpreneur alleges the first payment of R300,000 was made in cash to Cele at Matlala’s luxury Pretoria penthouse – a property where Cele later stayed. "I made an initial payment of R300,000 in cash to former minister Cele at my residence in Pretoria, around January. I handed over the money while he was inside my apartment. This was after he told me they needed gratification, which he called a ‘facilitation fee’, related to his role in returning my firearms and stopping the harassment. He also implied that he was not acting alone, which explained why such a large sum was required."
Matlala further stated that he offered his Pretoria apartment to Cele for use when he was in the capital. "I offered my apartment to minister Cele for use when he is in Pretoria. In one of the messages, I referred to minister Cele as my ‘business associate’ when communicating with the property management. I only said that to give some basis for the nature of the relationship, but minister Cele was not actually my business associate. He stayed at my apartment three or four times," he testified.
The second alleged cash payment, amounting to R200,000, purportedly took place at the exclusive Beverly Hills Hotel in Umhlanga, KwaZulu-Natal, in March of this year. "The purpose of these payments, from my perspective, was to acknowledge my belief that minister Cele had control over [these] police and had effectively stopped the harassment," Matlala explained.
According to Matlala, the demands for money did not stop there. "Minister Cele later contacted me for more money, citing issues with his and his wife’s cars. I eventually started to see these demands as extortion and stopped making the payments and taking his calls on or about 9 May 2025. Shortly thereafter, I was arrested on 14 May 2025."
During his conversations with Cele, Matlala also claims that Brown Mogotsi, who at the time purported to be from now-suspended police minister Senzo Mchunu’s office, was also involved. Matlala alleges that Mogotsi, described as a controversial political “fixer” and information peddler, received R200,000 from him as a contribution to the ANC’s January 8th celebrations in Khayelitsha, Cape Town. The money, according to Matlala, was used to pay for flights for "different people," and he claims to possess the ID numbers of those for whom he booked flights.
Matlala told the committee that Mogotsi was allegedly sent by Mchunu to solicit funds for the celebrations. He stated, "He was repeatedly asking me for money for ‘investigators’ and a ‘January 8th ANC thing’, claiming it would help resolve my issues with the police. Minister Cele advised me to keep on entertaining him and ‘just give him [Mogotsi] for the last time’, stating that Mogotsi would eventually lead them to minister Mchunu. I felt pressured to comply to ensure minister Cele’s continued assistance."
It is worth noting that during his own testimony to the committee, Cele claimed that he met Matlala because he believed that Matlala possessed information about Mchunu.
At this stage, we are unable to independently verify all of Matlala’s allegations. Matlala is scheduled to continue his testimony on Thursday, and the committee's investigation is ongoing. The public awaits further developments with bated breath.
Follow Us on Twitter
