Attempted murder and corruption accused Vusimusi “Cat” Matlala has launched an urgent legal bid to force the state to move him out of a super-maximum security prison in Kokstad, arguing that being held 700km from Gauteng is crippling his ability to prepare for multiple high-profile trials.
Matlala, a businessman at the centre of a R360m police health services tender and two separate attempted murder cases, is currently detained at eBongweni Correctional Centre in KwaZulu-Natal, one of the country’s most secure facilities. He was transferred there from Kgosi Mampuru II Correctional Centre’s C-Max section in Pretoria after he was allegedly found with a cellphone.
In court papers filed at the high court in Pretoria, Matlala says his current conditions as a remand detainee are unconstitutional and are making it impossible for him to properly consult his legal team as his case load grows.
“The supermax facility is plus minus 700km away from the Johannesburg high court as well as Pretoria magistrate’s court wherein my trial will take place. The high costs associated with this adds an unnecessary burden on me and further hampers my ability to prepare adequately,” Matlala argues in court papers.
Matlala wants an order directing the state to transfer him back to Kgosi Mampuru II, where he was originally remanded, and a declaration that both his detention in C-Max as a remand detainee and his subsequent transfer to eBongweni are inconsistent with the Constitution and invalid.
In his application, Matlala seeks an order declaring his detention, as a remand detainee, at the C-Max section of Kgosi Mampuru Il Correctional Centre and subsequent transfer inconsistent with the constitution and invalid. Matlala was moved in December 2025.
Department of Correctional Services national commissioner Makgothi Thobakgale and minister Pieter Groenewald are cited as respondents and intend to oppose the application.
Matlala’s trial in the Johannesburg high court is set down for 20 July, while he also faces proceedings in the Pretoria magistrate’s court. He argues that regular, in-person consultations with his lawyers and expert witnesses are essential to mounting an adequate defence, but that distance and cost now make this practically impossible.
“In view of my trial being set down for July 20, I now need to consult my legal team on a continuous basis to prepare my defence on the matter …and to consult with various experts I intend on calling in my defence.
“The high costs associated with transporting my legal team, accommodation … make this an unaffordable exercise which will ultimately limit my ability to prepare for the trial adequately…”
He further claims that his detention regime has already interfered with critical aspects of his legal strategy.
Matlala also argues the move resulted in him not being able to adequately consult his legal team before being interviewed by Madlanga commission evidence leaders in March.
He says the logistical and administrative challenges of being housed at eBongweni contributed to him missing a scheduled court appearance in Pretoria earlier this month.
Matlala was due to appear in Pretoria magistrate’s court on April 7 but did not, which led the court to direct the department to him keep in Pretoria for his appearance on April 20.
“…my continued incarceration at eBongweni has proven to be wholly unmanageable and prejudicial to my ability to prepare my defence as well as in the case of the April 7, I was even unable to attend court.”
That appearance relates to corruption charges stemming from a R360m contract awarded to his company, Medicare24, for the provision of health services to the South African Police Service (SAPS). The same tender has already led to the suspension of national police commissioner General Fannie Masemola and charges against at least 12 senior SAPS officers.
Matlala also faces a separate cluster of violent-crime charges.
He is charged with the attempted murder of actress Tebogo Thobejane, and faces further counts of attempted murder for a 2022 shooting of taxi boss Madoda “Joe” Sibanyoni and his associates.
Prosecutors allege that in both matters he played a central role in orchestrating or carrying out targeted attacks, though he maintains his innocence and is preparing to contest the charges at trial.
Beyond the legal arguments about distance and access to counsel, Matlala’s application also raises concerns about his mental health behind bars. He says the conditions under which he has been held since his initial placement in C-Max on 7 July – after being found with a cellphone – have left him severely distressed.
Matlala contends his detention conditions since July 7 at C Max in Pretoria after he was found with a cellphone has caused him severe distress.
A clinical psychologist’s assessment from February, attached to his papers, states that he is displaying symptoms consistent with major depressive disorder and post‑traumatic stress disorder.
A clinical psychologist’s report from February, attached in court papers, said Matlala had symptoms consistent with major depressive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.
The Department of Correctional Services has so far not publicly detailed why Matlala, as a remand detainee, was placed at eBongweni, which is typically reserved for high‑risk sentenced inmates. Citing security and operational considerations, it is opposing his attempt to be moved.
For prison authorities, the case will test the balance between discipline and security on the one hand, and the constitutional rights of awaiting‑trial prisoners on the other – including the right to a fair trial, adequate facilities to prepare a defence, and humane conditions of detention.
For Matlala, the stakes are even higher. He is fighting on multiple legal fronts: violent-crime trials in Gauteng, a sprawling corruption case tied to the Medicare24 contract, and now a constitutional challenge to his place of detention.
He returns to the dock on May 13 along with 12 police officers.
By then, the Pretoria high court may have given an indication of whether he will remain in the Kokstad supermax or be brought back to Kgosi Mampuru II – a decision that could shape not only the logistics, but also the fairness, of some of the most closely watched criminal trials on the horizon.
