Brown Mogotsi, a North West businessman with longstanding ties to the ANC and a history plagued by allegations of police corruption, delivered a dramatic and at times bizarre testimony before the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry this Tuesday. Mogotsi's appearance marked the beginning of the commission's second phase, designed to allow individuals implicated in earlier proceedings to respond to the claims against them.
Testimony before the Madlanga Commission took a dramatic turn this week when North West businessman Brown Mogotsi delivered a lengthy account filled with allegations, intelligence claims and references to some of the country’s most senior police and political figures. Mogotsi, who has long been associated with ANC structures and has been repeatedly linked to allegations of corruption within law enforcement, used his appearance on Tuesday to respond to allegations raised during the commission’s first phase.
The Madlanga Commission is currently examining the “veracity, scope and extent” of allegations made by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi about political interference in policing and the infiltration of criminal networks into the criminal justice system. The opening of phase two allows those who were implicated to give their version. Mogotsi, who once played a prominent role campaigning for Cyril Ramaphosa in the 2017 ANC leadership race, has been accused of operating as a link between sidelined former minister Senzo Mchunu and alleged crime boss Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala.
Before addressing the claims directly, Mogotsi began with a personal account of his history. He said he had “served in the trenches” of Umkhonto weSizwe during the liberation struggle and had undertaken intelligence-gathering tasks in those years. According to him, this background made him a suitable candidate for what he described as a long-running relationship with Crime Intelligence. He told the commission that he was recruited as an informant in 1999 and promoted ten years later to the role of contact agent.
He said that in this role he was equipped with a tool “used by all crime intelligence organisations in the world”, referring to the practice of legend building. Mogotsi described this as the creation of a false life or cover identity used to shield the true purpose of clandestine operations. He claimed that contact agents operated without any identification that linked them to intelligence structures, and that the files of such agents were kept only by their handlers, who also paid them in cash.
He described himself as a conduit between intelligence operatives and informants, passing information while protecting the identities of those involved. He said he had been deployed to probe high-ranking police officials and also those, like Matlala, who were suspected of involvement in organised crime. “I work for a handler whose identity cannot be revealed,” he told the commission. “My role was to provide information to Crime Intelligence.”
Alongside these claims, police are at present investigating an apparent attempt on Mogotsi’s life. He was reportedly travelling in a vehicle in Vosloorus when it came under fire. The car, according to the police report mentioned in the commission, was riddled with bullets, but Mogotsi was not harmed.
Evidence leader Advocate Matthew Chaskalson SC said on Tuesday that the aim at this stage was not to interrogate Mogotsi’s full statement, but rather to allow him to place his version before the commission. Chaskalson is expected to cross-examine him on Wednesday.
From there, Mogotsi moved into a series of allegations involving senior figures in the police and government. One of the most startling claims involved Lieutenant General Mkhwanazi and Zulu King Misuzulu kaZwelithini. Mogotsi told the commission that suspicions had surfaced in 2023 and 2024 that both men had been recruited by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States. He linked these suspicions to South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, claiming that “Israeli interests” in the Richards Bay area had concerns the trade there might be disrupted.
He said, “The information we got suggested there was suspicion that Mkhwanazi had been recruited by the United States’ Central Intelligence Agency, the CIA, and that he was actively working for them.” When asked to explain, Mogotsi said the suspicions arose because “The king stayed in the US, and Mkhwanazi would often say he was trained by Americans.” He also claimed he discussed these matters with the late former police minister Nathi Mthethwa in August 2025, saying Mthethwa shared similar concerns. Mthethwa died in Paris the following month while serving as ambassador to France.
The businessman then addressed allegations involving Matlala’s company, Medicare24 Tshwane District, which had received a R360-million SAPS tender later cancelled. He said an unnamed source informed him that former police minister Bheki Cele and national police commissioner Fannie Masemola had received kickbacks. He told the commission, “Masemola demanded R25-million and was already paid R5-million, and Cele demanded R10-million and already paid R2-million.” According to him, these comments were made by Matlala during a meeting on 7 December 2024, where Matlala also expressed frustration about the police failing to pay according to the tender agreement.
This testimony adds to the broader picture painted at the commission, where it has already been alleged that Matlala made payments to suspended deputy national commissioner Shadrack Sibiya, to Mchunu’s ANC presidential campaign, and to several senior police officers. While Cele has acknowledged knowing Matlala, he has not previously been linked to receiving money.
Another extraordinary claim involved the figure known as “John Wick”, who targeted Boko Haram gang members in Mamelodi in 2021. Mogotsi said this feared gunman was in fact Matlala. He said messages between himself and Matlala showed connections between Matlala and Cele, arguing that an intelligence presentation on Boko Haram, tabled by Cele in Parliament in 2018, showed Cele knew of Matlala well before their reported meeting in October 2024.
Mogotsi also recounted what he said was his involvement in cleaning up Crime Intelligence after the PPE procurement scandal. He claimed that in December 2020 he was asked by the late deputy national police commissioner Sindile Mfazi to investigate concerns about vehicle procurement irregularities and informant payments. He said he uncovered evidence of inflated claims and cash transactions not aligned with policy. Mfazi died in 2021, and Mogotsi told the commission that his death was under investigation as a suspected poisoning. After Mfazi’s passing, he said his handler instructed him to keep a low profile.
Mogotsi now returns to the stand for cross-examination, where the extraordinary claims placed before the commission are expected to come under scrutiny.
Follow Us on Twitter
