Cold case detectives arrest former police general after 100 rounds of SAPS ammunition found at Centurion home
The 57-year-old, who left the service in 2009, was picked up in a raid tied to the murder investigation of former deputy national commissioner Sindile Mfazi and appears in the Johannesburg Magistrate's Court on Tuesday.
A former South African Police Service general, aged 57, was arrested after detectives searching his Centurion home found more than 100 rounds of police-issued ammunition, including R5 and 9mm rounds. He is expected before the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, 20 October 2026, on a charge of unlawful possession of ammunition under the Firearms Control Act 60 of 2000.
The South African reported the arrest on Tuesday. The Enquirer has confirmed the details against the SAPS statement carried in that reporting.
The search happened on 6 July 2026, carried out by members of the National Cold Case Unit. Alongside the ammunition, investigators seized documents and electronic devices they believe are relevant to the murder investigation of former deputy national police commissioner Lieutenant-General Sindile Mfazi.
National police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said the suspect left the police service more than 17 years ago. “The former general left the SAPS in 2009, and there are no valid reasons for his possession of the SAPS-issued ammunition,” she said.
Police have withheld his identity ahead of his first appearance. He has not been charged with Mfazi’s murder, and SAPS has not said whether he faces further charges, whether the ammunition discovery is directly connected to the death, or whether more arrests are expected.
Mfazi died in July 2021. His death was initially attributed to COVID-19 complications. Investigators later uncovered evidence that changed the case, and in July 2026 Mathe confirmed the docket had been reclassified. “We can confirm the case was changed from being registered as an inquest docket to a murder docket,” she said at the time.
Examinations conducted after Mfazi’s body was exhumed detected a poisonous substance. “The team had to determine whether it was accidentally ingested or whether there was an intention to kill him. After the gathering of evidence and information, the team is quite confident they are investigating a murder case,” Mathe said.
The National Cold Case Unit has run several operations as part of that investigation. Tuesday’s appearance is the first public step in the ammunition case, and the murder docket remains open.
