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By Anita Dangazele
- The NPA’s internal watchdog found Ntaba cooperated fully and was unlikely to interfere with its ongoing investigation into the threats he received.
- Taxi boss Joe ‘Ferrari’ Sibanyoni and three co-accused are out on R70,000 bail each, with the case back in court on 1 September.
The NPA has cleared prosecutor Mkhuseli Ntaba and told him to return to work. The decision came after the authority’s internal watchdog found his account credible, even before its investigation is finished.
Ntaba was suspended last month after he turned back from a bail hearing in the extortion case against Mpumalanga taxi boss Joe “Ferrari” Sibanyoni. He said he received death threats on his way to court. The case collapsed. Sibanyoni and three co-accused walked free.
The NPA’s Office for Ethics and Accountability submitted an interim report on 2 June. It found that Ntaba had cooperated fully and was unlikely to interfere with whatever investigations remain outstanding. On that basis, National Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Andy Mothibi lifted the suspension.
“I have appealed to the OEA to consider including recommendations in the final report regarding measures to be put in place to further improve the process regarding provision of security to prosecutors and other staff,” Mothibi said.
Sibanyoni, 60, and co-accused Bafana Sindane, Mvimbi Masilela and Philemon Msiza are now out on R70,000 bail each. The case returns to the Delmas Magistrate’s Court on 1 September 2026.
The NPA re-enrolled the matter at Delmas after the original case at Kwaggafontein collapsed. Sibanyoni and Sindane had filed an urgent High Court application to block their arrest before eventually appearing in court. Bail was granted with strict conditions, including no contact with witnesses.
The NPA said it is also pursuing leave to appeal the contempt of court conviction against Ntaba that followed the collapse of the Kwaggafontein proceedings.
Pictured above: National Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Andy Mothibi.
Image source: NPA
