By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Madlanga commission of inquiry into allegations of corruption in the criminal justice system, chaired by retired deputy chief justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga, heard that all three murders of Oupa ‘DJ Sumbody’ Sefoka, Hector ‘DJ Vintos’ Buthelezi, and Don Tindleni were carried out with the same AK-47.
The Commission is investigating allegations of collusion and corruption between politicians, senior police, prosecutors, intelligence operatives, and elements of the judiciary, levelled by KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.
Captain Solomon Modisane, a senior ballistics expert, was requested to compare the exhibits from all three murders.
Modisane said the gun leaves unique microscopic marks on each cartridge case, which helped investigators connect the crimes to a single weapon.
“So in paragraph nine which is my first findings is the cartridge cases mentioned in 4.1.1, 4.2.1, are the exhibit that I found in the Sandton case 398 of 11/2022 – a matter of DJ Sumbody. 5.1 8s the exhibits that I found in Orlando case 93 of 2/2023 where Don Tindleni was murdered and 6.1 were the exhibits that I retrieved in the case file under Orlando 220 of 3/2022 where DJ Vintos was murdered, and 7.1.1 and 7.2.1 are the test cartridge cases that I found inside a sealed bag in the case of Bramely 149 of 4/2024. So all these exhibits were all fired from the same firearm,” he said.
The same firearm was also connected to the murder of Armand Swart in April 2024.
Swart was shot 23 times outside his office building in Vereeniging and the investigation led to the arrest of Johannesburg central police station detective Pule Tau and two hired hitmen, who are currently facing charges in court.
Alleged underworld boss Katiso “KT” Molefe is also linked to the murder, was recently released on R400 000 bail for assassination of DJ Sumbody and his two bodyguards in November 2022. He is also charged with the murders of DJ Vintos and Tindleni.
Modisane further highlighted investigative lapses in the Swart case, noting that Captain Mokgotlwe, initially assigned to examine a 9mm pistol seized from Musa Kekana’s residence, failed to retrieve its serial number—a critical step in tracing the firearm’s history and ownership. Another officer later retrieved the serial number without issue.
Kekana, alongside Floyd Mabusela and Tau, are charged in assassination of Swart, allegedly under Molefe’s orders.
The commission also heard that detectives claimed Mokgotlwe had previously suggested the firearm was linked to other serious crimes, a claim later confirmed by the Integrated Ballistics Identification System.
Captain Meldon Mkhatshwa, meanwhile expressed concern over the effectiveness of the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT).
Mkhatshwa presented findings on firearms seized in various cases, including the murder of Swart. The PKTT was disbanded by suspended police minister Senzo Mchunu in December 2024.
He explained that many of the original members did not return when the team was “re-established”. Ballistics experts, crime intelligence personnel, and Local Criminal Records Center officials were not reinstated, leaving mainly detectives and combat officers.
Without these experienced professionals, Mkhatshwa says the team lacks the efficiency it once had.
The NPKTT, formed in 2018, followed a directive from President Cyril Ramaphosa after a spate of political assassinations.
The President’s intervention led to the formation of a three-tier response mechanism: an inter-ministerial committee, a steering committee, and an operational-level task team, which became known as the NPKTT.