Idac head says she did not know Khumalo convened PKTT when he was arrested

Head of the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (Idac), Adrea Johnson, told the Madlanga commission she was not aware that Crime Intelligence head Dumisani Khumalo was the convener of the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT) when he was arrested. Johnson said the arrest, on 26 June 2025, followed a criminal complaint by National Coloured Congress leader Fadiel Adams and related to Khumalos conduct as head of Crime Intelligence.

Arrest tied to complaint by Fadiel Adams

Johnson told the commission Idac acted following a referral by Mr Adams. She said the Idac investigation produced evidence establishing reasonable and probable cause for prosecution and that the matter related to alleged unlawful conduct by Khumalo in his capacity as Divisional Commissioner of Crime Intelligence.

The article states Khumalo has maintained the case against him was a labour-related dispute rather than criminal conduct, and that he has lodged representations with the office of National Director of Public Prosecutions Andy Mothibi requesting a review of the National Prosecuting Authoritys decision to prosecute him.

Johnson rejects suggestion arrest was to halt PKTT investigations

Johnson dismissed claims that Khumalos arrest was intended to stop criminal investigations in Gauteng or to embarrass him. She described such suggestions as “anything but true” and “false and unfortunate.”

“This suggestion is anything but true. It is false and unfortunate. The truth is that Idac was investigating Lieutenant-General Khumalo in his capacity as the Divisional Commissioner of Crime Intelligence for alleged unlawful conduct that manifested itself in the execution of his duties in that capacity.”

KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi had told parliaments Ad hoc committee in October that Khumalos arrest was a project to stop criminal investigations in Gauteng and that a ministerial letter to disband the PKTT was part of that project. Johnson rejected that characterisation.

How the arrest unfolded

Johnson also described the circumstances of the arrest at Oliver Reginald Tambo International Airport. She said investigators went to OR Tambo to inform Khumalo that there was a warrant for his arrest and to ask him to hand himself over. According to Johnson, the investigators explained who they were, why he was sought and what his rights were, and then asked him to accompany them to Brooklyn Police Station in Pretoria, which he did.

“There was nothing dramatic about it. At all times during his arrest, Lieutenant-General Khumalos security detail was with him. He was not threatened and was accorded all the respect that could be accorded a person of his profile.”

Idacs wider findings and referrals

Johnson said the wider set of matters referred by Mr Adams depict alleged capture of systems and processes within Crime Intelligence by senior managers, and described how certain appointments allegedly enabled strategic access to funding without following proper processes.

She said that, while only one appointment was referenced by Adams in relation to the Khumalo matter, looking at the matters holistically revealed a pattern that Idac considered to involve state capture, fraud, corruption and defeating the ends of justice. Johnson indicated she intended to testify further about those issues if granted leave to do so.