By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The suspended Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) deputy chief Julius Mkhwanazi has been arrested on Saturday morning.
Mkhwanazi was arrested at his home by the South African Police Services (SAPS) Madlanga Commission Task Team.
The team has been established to investigate prima facie evidence of wrongdoing involving people identified in the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry’s interim report.
“The official was arrested this morning at his home in Gauteng. The Task Team is still searching for other suspects linked to the case. These arrests emanate from an ongoing investigation into corruption within the Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department,” the Task team said in a statement.
The City of Ekurhuleni (COE) spokesperson Phakamile Mbengashe also confirmed the arrest.
He is expected to appear in Boksburg Magistrate Court on Monday, 20 April 2026.
Mkhwanazi faces a raft of corruption allegations, including using the metro police department as his own personal domain.
The commission has heard allegations that EMPD officers, under Mkhwanazi’s command, stole precious stones worth more than R14 million during the 2023 operation.
Mkhwanazi admitted he did not record the incident or follow up on it, raising further concerns.
He told the inquiry that months later, IPID informed him that a person had died during the operation and that he was accused of ordering the removal and dumping of the body in the Nigel River, allegations he denies.
The late Marius van der Merwe known as Witness D, testified that Mkhwanazi helped dispose of the body of suspected thief Emmanuel Mbense.
Van der Merwe, who was shot dead on the driveway of his Brakpan home on December 5, 2025, testified last year that his bakkie was used to transport the body.