By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Police Minister Firoz Cachalia says the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) report on the break-in and theft at Phala Phala farm has been declassified.
Cachalia was replying to a written Parliamentary question from African Transformational Movement (ATM).
He said the report was declassified on 2 February 2026.
The Phala Phala saga began in June 2022 when criminal charges were laid against President Cyril Ramaphosa and members of his security detail.
Former director-general at the State Security Agency Arthur Fraser alleged that Ramaphosa and his team had covered up a February 2020 burglary at his game farm, where large sums of foreign currency—allegedly concealed in furniture—were stolen.
The money was around $580,000, was said to be a payment from Sudanese businessman Hazim Mustafa for 20 buffalo.
Cachalia said the Ipid report had been classified as ‘top secret’ to protect the integrity of the investigation, witnesses, and South African Police Service (Saps) members who might have been implicated and to ensure that Saps members do not see their names in public platforms before their trial commences.
Moreover, Ipid was aware of the fact that DPCI is investigating the criminal aspect of this matter, and it is inevitable that information contained in the Ipid report will also be expressed in the DPCI case docket. To ensure that information obtained through Ipid’s investigation is not put out in the public, prior to the commencement of the criminal trial, Ipid classified the Investigation Report as Top Secret, “said Cachalia.
In that same response, Cachalia said Ipid was considering declassifying the report “to balance the individual rights as alluded to above with the public interest to access information”.
After considering the initial reasons for the top secret classification and public interest, Ipid came to a decision that the classification is no longer serving the purpose. As a result, Ipid declassified the investigation report on 2 February 2026,” said Cachalia.
However, the report will only be accessible through proper legal processes, he said.
“Ipid investigation reports are inherently not published for public consumption, and as such, there is no intention to release or publish the report publicly, “explained Cachalia.
While this report is now declassified, other investigations into the Phala Phala matter have been made public.
In August 2023, the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) concluded that no exchange control laws had been violated in the alleged transaction between Phala Phala farm and Mustafa.
SARB’s investigation focused on whether the sale of buffalo to Mustafa constituted a breach of exchange control regulations.
The central bank determined that there was no contravention because the transaction had never been “perfected.”
In other words, since the buffalo were never delivered, the deal did not meet the necessary conditions to require a declaration under exchange control laws.
“Thus, SARB cannot conclude that there was any contravention of Exchange Control Regulations… by Ntaba Nyoni Estates CC (the entity involved) or, for that matter, by the President,” the bank stated in its report.
Despite SARB’s findings, critics remain sceptical, arguing that the unresolved questions surrounding the source of the money and its storage in furniture continue to cast a shadow over the presidency.