WATCH | Again? Suspended EMPD chief Julius Mkhwanazi arrested once more

Julius Mkhwanazi

Gauteng – Suspended Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) Deputy Chief Julius Mkhwanazi has reportedly been arrested by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) in connection with the 2022 murder of Emmanuel Mbense.

According to Ipid, five suspects – including members of the EMPD, the South African Police Service (SAPS) and a private citizen – were arrested on Wednesday over Mbense’s alleged murder, the dumping of his body at Spaarwater Dam in Duduza, Nigel, and the failure to report the crime, The Citizen reported.

Ipid said Mbense was implicated in a business robbery in Boksburg North, prompting a police raid on his home on 14 April 2022.

“He disappeared on the same day of the raid, and his body was discovered on 15 April 2022 at Spaarwater Dam by a passerby,” the directorate said.

Mkhwanazi and his co-accused are expected to appear in the Brakpan Magistrate’s Court on Thursday on charges of murder and defeating the ends of justice.

According to IOL, investigators believe the arrests represent a major breakthrough in a case that has drawn national attention following allegations that Mbense was tortured to death by members of the SAPS, the EMPD and private civilians before his body was dumped in the dam.

The report also said that the case gained renewed prominence after testimony before the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry allegedly linked law enforcement officials to Mbense’s killing.

Among those arrested are former EMPD officer Keisha Leigh Stols and suspended EMPD officer Adrian Mackenzie, who already face robbery and theft charges. The pair are also implicated alongside Mkhwanazi in a separate case involving the alleged theft of precious stones.

The arrests follow an Ipid investigation that was referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in February 2026. The watchdog also recommended disciplinary action against implicated SAPS and EMPD members.

The latest arrest adds to Mkhwanazi’s growing legal troubles. He is already facing several other criminal cases, including charges relating to an alleged R14.9 million gemstone theft, the alleged unlawful installation of blue lights on vehicles linked to alleged underworld figure Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala, and a separate fraud and corruption case involving an Ekurhuleni traffic matter. He remains out on bail in those matters and is also the subject of ongoing disciplinary proceedings within the EMPD.

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