âDeath pactâ bound Julius Mkhwanazi and co-accused to secrecy in murder case, court hears

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The State has alleged that those involved in the murder of Brakpan businessman Emmanuel Mbense made a pact after his killing, meeting at Carnival City, where they allegedly swore each other to secrecy, with violating the oath punishable by death.

Of the 13 law enforcement and private security members who allegedly attended that meeting, four have since died after allegations about Mbenseâs killing were aired at the Madlanga Commission.

Six people now face charges for Mbenseâs murder: former Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) deputy chief Julius Mkhwanazi, EMPD officers Keisha Leigh Stols and Adrian MacKenzie, former SAPS officers Bhekokwakhe Sibande and Juan Maree Eksteen, and private security company owner Cobus Janse van Rensburg.

They face charges of murder, robbery with aggravating circumstances and defeating the ends of justice.

Itâs unclear whether further charges will be laid against the other surviving members of the alleged pact or if prosecutors have identified them.

The six appeared in the Brakpan Magistratesâ Court on Thursday, 13 July, for their bail hearing and all indicated they intend to plead not guilty.

Mkhwanazi has also been charged in several other matters.

Abducted, tortured

Mbense was allegedly abducted, tortured and murdered in April 2022. His case drew widespread public attention following the revelations at the Madlanga Commission.

After a robbery at the Schneider Electric Warehouse in Brakpan on 9 March 2022, where armed men stole a large amount of copper, the police and security personnel are accused of visiting a premises they believed Mbense owned after linking him to a truck used in the robbery.

The EMPD, SAPS and private security guards allegedly raided the premises, ransacked the property and apprehended Mbense. While they were questioning him, Mbense allegedly said they should instead take R500,000 that was in his possession.

âThey did not listen to his pleas and kept on assaulting him while others were pinning him down,â reads the charge sheet.

The accused allegedly tortured him to death before disposing of his body by dumping it in the Spaarwater Dam in Nigel.

Sworn to secrecy

âAfter the disposal of the body, the group held a meeting at Carnival City, where they swore to secrecy about the events that had just happened. There was a punishment agreed upon for anyone who would betray the group. That punishment was death,â the charge sheet continues.

The State further alleges that on 16 April 2022, the group held another meeting at Rosetulee in Brakpan, where it was expressed that they had lost trust in Janse van Rensburg, as well as others who had been present, including Marius van der Merwe and Jaco Hanekom, âbecause they looked like weak links who would betray themâ.

Four of the 13 law enforcement officials and private security personnel allegedly linked to Mbenseâs killing have since died from gunshot wounds.

Van der Merwe and Hanekom were both later killed, along with another member of the alleged group, SAPS officer Mzwakhe Khoza. Wiandre Pretorius, a former SAPS reservist and police informant, died by suicide.

Four deaths

Van der Merwe, who testified under the pseudonym âWitness Dâ at the Madlanga Commission to protect his identity, was fatally shot outside his home in Brakpan on 5 December 2025, three weeks after testifying.

A former EMPD officer, he was the owner of a private security company who became a key whistleblower at the commission after testifying about Mbenseâs killing.

Hanekom, who also ran a private security business, was an informant for the EMPD. In late 2022, he obtained and provided CCTV footage exposing a rogue, unauthorised EMPD operation in Meyerton, roughly 75km outside the metro policeâs lawful jurisdiction, where officers were involved in a copper theft case.

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate used Hanekomâs evidence to arrest and charge several allegedly corrupt EMPD officers. Hanekom was shot and killed 10 days after submitting evidence related to the copper theft case on 17 March 2023.

Khoza, from the SAPS, was fatally shot outside his home in Tsakane on 17 October 2025 after confronting drug dealers.

Law enforcement and the Hawks tracked down and arrested an alleged drug dealer, who confessed to hiring hitmen to target Khoza for his anti-narcotics work. Investigators have also linked the suspect to the network implicated in Mbenseâs murder.

Pretorius, a former SAPS reservist and police informant, died by suicide on 7 February at the Astron Energy filling station in Brakpan. He reportedly died in the presence of his wife, Juan Maree Eksteen, who is one of those charged with Mbenseâs murder.

Defence seeks to shift blame

During Thursdayâs appearance, the accused denied that any involvement in Mbenseâs torture, murder and body disposal, with some denying that they had ever seen him.

They also appeared to avoid implicating each other. One or two mentioned seeing the other at the scene, but did not say they had seen them participating in any crime.

The defence teams focused on the credibility and conduct of the deceased witnesses. They sought to shift blame on Van der Merwe by citing evidence he gave before the Madlanga Commission in which they claimed he implicated himself in Mbenseâs killing and the disposal of his body.

Mkhwanaziâs defence also pointed to alleged comments made by Van der Merweâs wife to the media that he had been involved with illegal mining, suggesting this may have made him a target.

The accused argued that, because they have not been linked to the deaths of their alleged co-conspirators, the deaths should not be used as grounds to deny them bail.

The bail hearing continues on Friday, 14 August. DM

Reporting originally appeared via Daily Maverick. Read the full source for additional context.