Former Hawks head, retired Lieutenant-General Godfrey Lebeya, has denied having any links to the alleged cartel now known as the Big Five.
He appeared before the Madlanga Commission on Thursday and said his involvement in a failed attempt to prevent the arrest of criminally accused businessman and alleged cartel member Katiso “KT” Molefe in December 2024 was purely the result of confusion.
Lebeya blamed KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi and Crime Intelligence Head Dumisani Khumalo, whom he claimed failed to inform him that they were planning to arrest Molefe, who was wanted in connection with a number of crimes, including murder.
Molefe was arrested at his Sandhurst mansion in connection with the murder of Vereeniging engineer Armand Swart, as well as the deaths of music producer DJ Sumbody, whose real name is Oupa Sefoka, and Hector Bhutlesi, known as DJ Vintos.
Previous witnesses at the inquiry testified that Hawks members arrived at Molefe’s home on Lebeya’s instruction, where they clashed with members of the Organised Crime Unit. The confrontation reportedly resulted in the two groups pointing guns at each other.
“There was confusion that I can say was caused by operational and oversight failure, which points to a failure of leadership. Those who were responsible, Khumalo and Mkhwanazi, failed to inform all affected law enforcement agencies. So, when we received a call that people were posing as Hawks members, we had to act because it had happened before that people would commit crimes while calling themselves police,” said Lebeya.
Lebeya also addressed allegations of his links to underworld figures, including socialite and person of interest Malcolm X, who is believed to have called the then Hawks head to intervene on Molefe’s behalf. Molefe was eventually detained and later released on R400,000 bail.
“I can take pictures with anyone. I had just had a meeting with Malcolm X when he asked for a picture, and I agreed. There’s nothing wrong with it,” Lebeya said of the photograph.
Regarding the armed standoff between Hawks officers and the Organised Crime Unit, Lebeya said the incident reflected weaknesses in operational planning and communication.
“This situation reflects poorly on the effectiveness of the preparatory processes, as it suggests a lack of unified command and insufficient communication among the involved parties. Responsibility for such a lapse belongs to the overall leader of the operation.
“It is the duty of the operational leader to ensure that all the affected state agencies are adequately briefed and that their roles are clearly defined to avoid overlap, confusion or unintended consequences,” said Lebeya.
The retired general also used his appearance before the Commission to raise concerns about human resources practices within the South African Police Service (SAPS).
He claimed that his promotion to head the Hawks was, in reality, a demotion, and alleged that figures such as Mkhwanazi received preferential treatment, including when Mkhwanazi acted as national police commissioner.
Lebeya claimed that proximity to certain influential individuals had helped fast-track some careers, while hard work and performance were not sufficiently rewarded within the police service.