By Palesa Matlala
- Police say the firearm linked to Brown Mogotsi’s alleged fake assassination attempt is also connected to murder and attempted murder cases.
- Brown Mogotsi’s lawyer says the political fixer was arrested outside the Madlanga Commission after giving evidence and spent the weekend in custody.
Controversial political fixer Brown Mogotsi is expected to appear in the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on Monday after police arrested him for allegedly staging an assassination attempt on himself.
Mogotsi spent the weekend behind bars after his arrest on Friday evening.
Police arrested him shortly after he finished giving evidence at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry in Pretoria.
The North West businessman faces a charge of defeating the ends of justice linked to a shooting incident in Vosloorus in November 2025.
Mogotsi claimed at the time that unknown gunmen attacked him while he was driving a red Chevrolet in Vosloorus, south east of Johannesburg.
He said men travelling in a white bakkie opened fire on his vehicle.
Police recovered about 11 bullet casings at the scene.
Investigators now believe Mogotsi staged the attack himself.
National police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said the arrest followed an investigation by a South African Police Service multidisciplinary team.
“The case emanates from the alleged staging of an attempted assassination on the suspect’s life in Vosloorus,” said Mathe.
She said preliminary investigations showed the firearm linked to the shooting had also been connected to other violent crimes.
“The firearm used in the commission of the crime has also been linked to other serious and violent crimes, including cases of murder and attempted murder,” she said.
Mogotsi is a central figure in allegations of corruption, political interference and leaks of confidential police information.
His lawyer, Radasi Sekgatja, said the legal team was not informed about the arrest and only learnt about it afterwards.
“We are informed, because we were not present at the time of the arrest, that immediately after our client gave testimony at the commission, he was arrested outside the commission’s offices,” said Sekgatja.
Sekgatja said the charges appeared to be linked to the Vosloorus incident but claimed details were still unclear.
He also denied knowing anything about a firearm allegedly recovered by police.
“We believe these are trumped up charges, which may have been motivated by our client’s stance in relation to his evidence before the Madlanga Commission,” he said.
Pictured above: Brown Mogotsi during a previous appearance before the Madlanga Commission.
Image source: Screenshot from the proceedings of the Madlanga Commission
This article has been updated.
