In a voice heavy with the weight of sacrifice, a seasoned police investigator has laid bare the devastating personal cost of fighting corruption from within the system. The man, known only as Witness C, told the Madlanga Commission that his life has been reduced to a “shadow” of its former self after he investigated powerful, well-connected individuals.
“I am not living a life, I am living a shadow of my former life,” he testified, describing an existence of constant fear, isolation, and profound personal loss.
A Policeman’s Calling, Shattered
Witness C, a certified forensic investigator and member of the Political Killings Task Team, described his police service as a “calling.” He wore his badge with pride, viewing his work as an “invaluable contribution to the community.” But that calling has now put him and everything he holds dear in the crosshairs.
His descent began after a raid on businessman Vusumuzi “Cat” Matlala’s Pretoria home in December 2024. The case, he said, “had taken more out of him than he could have imagined,” exposing a web of corruption that reached high into the police force itself.
A Life in Lockdown
The professional policeman is now unable to do his job. He is under 24-hour protection, his movements are restricted, and his ability to investigate is crippled.
“I cannot move freely in public… It is difficult to meet informants or to make new connections, as my current condition is not conducive to blending in,” he explained. “I cannot go to court normally and seek my orders. My movements are not free and spontaneous.”
The personal toll is even more heartbreaking. His commitment to his family has been weaponized against him. “I cannot take my family to a shopping mall or arrange for us to go out on holiday. I rarely see my family, because doing so is a direct endangerment of their lives.” This necessary distance has alienated him from his wife and children, whom he hasn’t seen in an extended period.
The Enemy Within: “Corrupt Superiors”
His most damning testimony was not about the criminals on the street, but the ones wearing uniforms. He stated that the greatest obstacle to fighting crime is the “corrupt individuals we have encountered [who] are senior-ranking members in the SAPS.”
“It is impossible to fight well-resourced, organised and ruthless criminals when your own superiors are corrupted and complicit in criminality,” he told the commission.
This internal corruption, he argued, is why South Africa is losing the war on organized crime, from cash-in-transit heists to kidnappings. It also creates a culture of fear among his colleagues, who now avoid him for fear of “repercussions.”
Witness C concluded that he was not seeking sympathy, but sounding an alarm. He wanted the commission to understand the “raw, unfiltered reality” for ethical police officers who find themselves fighting a war on two fronts: against the criminals in society, and the corrupt within their own ranks. His testimony stands as a stark monument to the price of integrity in a system under siege.
