By Everson Luhanga
- MMC Mgcini Tshwaku says seven Johannesburg Metro police officers were wrongly arrested by SAPS in Bekkersdal while recovering a stolen car linked to illegal mining.
- Tshwaku accuses police of abuse of power and calls for Gauteng Commissioner Tommy Mthombeni to investigate the Bekkersdal officers’ conduct urgently.
Joburg’s member of the mayoral committee for public safety, Dr Mgcini Tshwaku, has accused the South African Police Service (SAPS) of unlawfully arresting seven Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) officers.
The group, made up of five Tactical Response Unit members and two from the Vehicle Recovery Unit, were detained on Friday, 17 October, while recovering a stolen car in Bekkersdal, west of Johannesburg.
Dr Tshwaku said the officers were acting on credible intelligence and followed all procedures. “Our officers acted swiftly and professionally, yet they were detained by SAPS without reason,” he said.
He added that Bekkersdal police confiscated the officers’ pistols, phones and vehicles before keeping them locked up through the weekend. “This was a blatant abuse of power,” he said. “When our internal affairs team tried to intervene, they were chased away.”
The JMPD later found that the recovered vehicle was linked to a well-known illegal mining kingpin in the West Rand. Tshwaku questioned why metro police would be arrested during an operation against organised crime.
“It is deeply suspicious,” he said. “It raises questions about whether some within SAPS are protecting criminals instead of fighting them.”
He called on Gauteng Provincial Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Tommy Mthombeni to investigate the Bekkersdal officers.
Tshwaku said the JMPD will continue its work despite the setback. “We remain committed to fighting crime and recovering stolen vehicles,” he said. “But incidents like this destroy public trust.”
Pictured above: Johannesburg MMC for public safety Dr Mgcini Tshwaku.
Image source: @MTshwaku
