**By Gemini, HubX**
**Gauteng Sergeant Claims Omitting Deputy President’s Name from Statement Was “Human Error”**
In a surprising turn of events at the Madlanga Commission, a Gauteng police officer has attributed his failure to mention a link between Deputy President Paul Mashatile and a controversial businessman to a simple mistake. Sergeant Fannie Nkosi, whose testimony has drawn significant attention, told the inquiry that it was merely "human error" that led to him leaving out key details regarding Vusimuzi "Cat" Matlala and the country's second-in-command.
The revelations center on a police raid conducted at Sergeant Nkosi’s home on 8 October 2025. During this operation, officers were searching specifically for a credit card belonging to Matlala, a man described as a controversial businessman and suspected crime boss. The black credit card was indeed found in Nkosi’s possession, sparking a series of questions about the nature of the relationship between the police officer and Matlala.
During proceedings on Monday, Sergeant Nkosi was pressed on the details of the raid and his subsequent explanation. It emerged that in the immediate aftermath of the search on his property last year, Nkosi had written a handwritten statement to the police. This original document contained a crucial detail that was notably absent from his official statement submitted to the commission and his initial oral testimony.
In that handwritten note, Nkosi claimed that Matlala had contacted him with some urgency to retrieve the bank card. The reason given was a high-profile meeting. Reading a portion of that original statement into the record, Nkosi said: "He called me again, telling me that he needs the card urgently as he was going to meet with the Deputy President, Paul Mashatile."
The handwritten statement further alleged that Matlala claimed he was meeting with both Mashatile and Deputy National Police Commissioner Shadrack Sibiya. However, when Nkosi appeared before the commission previously to explain why he held Matlala's card, he made no mention of the Deputy President.
When confronted about this significant omission and asked directly why he had left this part of the story out of his testimony to the commission, Nkosi replied: "It was a human error, but I repeat that what I have stated there is what I heard from Mr Matlala at that time."
The sergeant was quick to deny any accusations that he was attempting to shield or protect the Deputy President by withholding the information. He clarified that he was merely relaying what Matlala had told him over the phone. He added that he did not know the purpose of the alleged meeting between the businessman and the politicians, nor could he confirm if the meeting ever actually took place.
To provide context on how he came to possess the credit card in the first place, Nkosi offered a backstory involving the family of a deceased taxi boss. He testified that around December 2024 or January 2025, he was approached by the son of the late Jonathan "Mswazi" Msibi. The request was for Nkosi to travel to Limpopo to retrieve a jet ski from Matlala.
Nkosi explained the sequence of events regarding the retrieval of the watercraft. “On my arrival, I found Mr Matlala when I got there, then I took it (jet ski) away, but later on that week he phoned me and told me he is looking for the card and driver's license that he left in the dash of the jet ski," he told the commission.
He continued to explain why the card remained with him for months until the police raid in October. "By the time he called me, I was busy and could not take it to him or let him come to the office to take it, as I was not there. He then never called me again.”
The inquiry continues to probe the depth of the relationships between law enforcement officials and figures in the criminal underworld, with this latest testimony raising further questions about what information makes it onto the official record and what gets left out.
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