Ngcukaitobi Puts Batohi Under Pressure Over Cato Manor Death Squad Footage

A Long Shadow Returns To The Spotlight

More than a decade after disturbing allegations first surfaced around the Cato Manor police unit, the issue has once again moved to the centre of national attention. This time, it is not only the former officers under scrutiny, but also the country’s top prosecuting authority.

At the Nkabinde Inquiry, Advocate Tembeka Ngcukaitobi SC delivered pointed questions to outgoing National Director of Public Prosecutions Shamila Batohi, probing why decisive action was not taken when explosive video evidence first emerged years ago.

For many South Africans, especially in KwaZulu-Natal, the hearing has reopened old wounds about police violence, justice delayed, and the accountability of institutions meant to protect the public.

The Video That Would Not Go Away

Central to Ngcukaitobi’s questioning is a video filmed by former police reservist Aristides Danikas. The footage shows a man lying wounded on the floor, pleading for medical help after being shot. According to testimony, he was allegedly left to die while senior officers from the Cato Manor unit stood by.

The video, which circulated widely at the time, fuelled accusations of extrajudicial killings and earned the unit the grim label of a “death squad” in public discourse. Ngcukaitobi argued that the seriousness and visibility of the footage should have triggered urgent intervention from the NDPP’s office.

Instead, Batohi told the inquiry she had been advised there was insufficient evidence to pursue racketeering charges against the unit.

“A Failure To Act?”

Ngcukaitobi put it directly to Batohi that the absence of decisive steps amounted to a dereliction of duty. He suggested that the matter was serious enough to warrant exceptional intervention from the head of the National Prosecuting Authority, rather than being treated as routine.

He also raised the 2010 killing of 16-year-old Kwazi Ndlovu, shot by Warrant Officer Gonasagren Padayachee. Despite repeated pleas from Ndlovu’s parents, who alleged evidence suppression, Ngcukaitobi argued that Batohi again failed to step in.

The defence went further, saying Batohi could not now describe the matters as “grave” while no extraordinary action was taken when the allegations first surfaced. They argued that responsibility was unfairly being shifted onto subordinates, including Advocate Andrew Chauke, whose conduct is the formal focus of the inquiry.

Batohi Pushes Back

Batohi has firmly rejected claims that she neglected her responsibilities. She maintained that the Nkabinde Inquiry is specifically concerned with Chauke’s conduct and the lawful limits of prosecutorial authority, not a broader reassessment of every decision taken by the NPA during that period.

She told the inquiry that prosecutorial decisions are guided by evidence thresholds and legal frameworks, not public pressure or emotional reaction, even when cases provoke widespread outrage.

Public Reaction And A Familiar Frustration

On social media, the hearings have sparked intense debate. Some users argue the questioning reflects a long-overdue reckoning with institutional failure, while others warn against rewriting history without acknowledging the legal constraints prosecutors face.

What unites many voices, however, is a familiar frustration: that cases involving alleged police brutality and deaths in custody often take years, sometimes decades, to reach meaningful conclusions.

In communities like Cato Manor, where policing has long been fraught, the inquiry is less about legal technicalities and more about whether the justice system can still deliver accountability when it matters most.

Why This Moment Matters

As Batohi approaches the end of her tenure, the exchange with Ngcukaitobi has become symbolic of a larger national question. Who bears responsibility when deeply troubling evidence emerges, but no prosecutions follow?

The Nkabinde Inquiry may not answer that question in full, but it has already reignited a crucial conversation about power, accountability, and whether South Africa’s institutions have truly learned from the darkest chapters of their past.

{Source:SABC Sport}

Follow Joburg ETC on Facebook, Twitter , TikTok and Instagram

For more News in Johannesburg, visit joburgetc.com