Sibiya grilled over leak of confidential SAPS audit report to Matlala

Suspended deputy police chief Shadrack Sibiya faced intense cross-examination at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry on Tuesday over claims that he leaked a confidential document to Sergeant Fannie Nkosi, which allegedly made its way to tenderpreneur Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala.

The document, an audit report recommending the termination of a R300-million contract Matlala had with the SA Police Service (SAPS), was not meant to be circulated.

Evidence leader advocate Adila Hassim, SC, and the commissioners zeroed in on one critical issue: why did Sibiya share the report with Nkosi — and did he do so knowing, or expecting, that Nkosi, allegedly acting as a go-between, would forward it to Matlala via WhatsApp?

The report was leaked to Matlala a month before the formal termination of the R300-million contract.

Read more: Inside Cat Matlala’s R360m police tender that ‘shouldn’t have been awarded’

On Monday, 23 February, the alleged ties between Sibiya and Matlala also came under scrutiny when WhatsApp messages revealed a deeper connection between the two than previously claimed.

Read more: Shadrack Sibiya caught in the middle of glory and scandal

In January, the commission heard that KwaZulu-Natal Hawks head Major General Lesetja Senona allegedly shared a top secret SAPS docket containing officers’ sensitive personal details with Matlala.

On Tuesday, Nkosi’s alleged role in arranging for Sibiya to meet with figures linked to extortion and the construction mafia came under scrutiny. The commission was shown messages between Nkosi, Matlala and other suspected criminals.

In response, Sibiya said he felt “at ease” using Nkosi to broker the meetings and facilitate contact with individuals in the underworld because Nkosi knew them — an explanation that intensified concern over his judgment and associations.

In November 2025, the commission was shown CCTV footage of Nkosi allegedly collecting bribe money from suspected cartel boss Katiso “KT” Molefe.

Nkosi also played a pivotal role in arranging Sibiya’s son’s engagement party, inviting the head of national organised crime, Major General Richard Shibiri, and Matlala.

The Madlanga Commission is hearing evidence of alleged criminality, political interference and corruption within South Africa’s law enforcement agencies, following claims by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi that top officials had conspired to obstruct investigations into criminal syndicates.

What led to the confidential report being leaked

Evidence leader Hassim said the issue could be traced back to a WhatsApp message on 22 March 2025 from City Press journalist Abram Mashego seeking comment on a story he was working on about the audit recommending the termination of Matlala’s contract.

Major-General Nonkululeko Phokane declined to comment, saying it was an internal matter regarding SAPS and suppliers.

Sibiya then WhatsApped the audit report — marked “confidential” — to Nkosi. The report called for Matlala’s contract to be axed, flagging the spending as potentially irregular and citing evidence of tender fraud.

Sibiya initially downplayed the document’s status, claiming he believed it was already in the public domain and “it wasn’t marked confidential, secret or top secret”.

This defence collapsed when Commissioner Sandile Khumalo, SC, pointed out that a watermark on the document clearly stated it was “confidential”. This elicited an awkward apology from Sibiya.

The commission chair, Mbuyiseli Madlanga, asked Sibiya, “Did you accept the probability Nkosi would share the document with Matlala?”

“Yes, chair,” replied Sibiya.

“What you are saying is that this was merely SAPS officers sharing information among themselves,” said Madlanga. “Yet you have already conceded there was a probability it would be shared with Matlala.”

Madlanga said the timing was critical: the contract was cancelled in May 2025, while the WhatsApp exchanges occurred in March 2025.

“In circumstances where you foresaw the probability of these chats reaching Matlala through Nkosi, you were effectively sharing this information to alert Matlala to what was unfolding — developments that, with hindsight, led to the termination of the contract.

“You were, in essence, alerting Matlala through Nkosi — effectively saying: be aware, there is trouble brewing.”

The commission found that Sibiya was incorrect in claiming the audit report was already in the public domain.

Co-commissioner Sesi Baloyi pointed out that the Mashego’s queries contained no attachment of the report itself.

A new witness is expected to take the stand on Wednesday. DM