The assassinations of several DJs in Gauteng are believed to have been over drug-related feuds
This was revealed by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, who said drugs were central to the murders of some popular entertainers in Gauteng. This is the first time a top cop of Mkhwanazi's calibre has confirmed the rumours that have been circulating regarding the recent hits on known entertainers.
Testifying before the parliament ad-hoc committee investigating allegations of corruption and criminality within the police on Wednesday, Mkhwanazi used an example of a drug consignment that allegedly disappeared in police custody in KwaZulu-Natal a few years ago. He said it ended up in the hands of some entertainers and was circulated at nightclubs in Gauteng. It was allegedly being sold at a cut-rate price, which attracted the attention of the original owners, known as The Big Five cartel.
"The murders of these DJs are drug-related," he said.
"The picture you’re going to see when the matters get to court is that this 'one thought he is clever by stealing this one’s drugs, and he started selling them, and this one then killed him."
The picture you’re going to see when the matters get to court is that this 'one thought he is clever by stealing this one’s drugs, and he started selling them, and this one then killed him
— Lt-Gen Nhlanhla, KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner
He said the consignment of valued at R200m was stolen from the police storage in KZN during the night which was affected by load shedding.
"But it so happened, in that case, that the drugs were entered into the...[police] register of the police station, booked out at the same time, and transported south of KZN to Port Shepstone, and locked into the offices of the Hawks that had no one guarding it."
Inside the storage were other drugs and illegal firearms that were kept as evidence, he said
"But when the break-in happened, the only thing that was stolen was this specific consignment of R200m worth of drugs and nothing else... We found an AK-47 standing there and we realise that the mission was not the AK-47. The mission was drugs. So they came to collect what is theirs and they took it away. They left everything else untouched and that made us conclude that it was a planned break-in, said Mkhwanazi
Some of the Gauteng that have been assassinated in recent times include DJ Sumbody, DJ Citi Lyts (Sandile Mkhize), DJ Vintos (Hector Ginimbi Buthelezi) and rapper Thulani “Heavy Pablo” Msimango, also died under strange circumstances.
Mkhwanazi also told the committee how he left his acting position as national police commissioner out of frustration because of the way then police minister Nathi Mthethwa conducted himself. Mthethwa passed on last week in France, where he was the SA ambassador.
Mkhwanazi, who was the acting commissioner around 2012, said Mthethwa wanted him to only advertise with the Guptas' newspaper, The New Age. He said at some stage Mthethwa wanted to introduce him to a Gupta associate at the Sheraton Hotel in Pretoria.
Mkhwanazi said Mthethwa had advised him not to advertise in City Press or Sunday Times, but rather to use The New Age, saying those other publications "did not want to transform".
"I thought maybe we need to rotate the office. I didn't even know what The New Age was. When I presented this to management in the office, they said to me 'do you know who owns The New Age?' I said, 'No, who owns it?' They said, 'Guptas.' I said, 'Okay, so what is wrong with that?'
"At the time, I was coming from the operations side. I didn’t even know who the Guptas were."
Mkhwanazi had said on Tuesday that Mthethwa also benefited from the intelligence slush fund which was used to erect a wall at his house in KZN.
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