Staff Writer| Sat, 06 Dec 2025
Image: Timothy Bernard / Independent Newspapers/IOL Graphics
The South African police have confirmed that an AK-47 automatic rifle was used to assassinate the key Madlanga Commission whistle-blower known as Witness D, Marius van der Merwe, prompting an urgent national manhunt for the weapon, the hitmen, and the mastermind behind the killing.
SAPS National Commissioner General Fannie Masemola is expected to brief Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga on Saturday on the investigation into the brazen hit, which took place outside the victim’s Brakpan home on Friday night.
Masemola will also outline measures to strengthen security for all participants linked to the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry.
Crime scene experts, ballistics specialists, crime intelligence operatives and the SAPS Serious and Violent Crime Unit worked through the night collecting material evidence.
Police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said preliminary findings confirm the use of an AK-47, intensifying fears that the murder was a highly coordinated and professionally executed hit.
Mathe said,Witness D had just arrived home with his wife shortly after 20:30. As he stepped out to open the gate, gunmen opened fire, striking him multiple times in the upper body. He died at the scene. His wife, who was in the vehicle, was not harmed.
She also confirmed that this was not a robbery, noting that the victim’s firearm, cellphone and wallet were found untouched.
A murder case has been registered and a widespread hunt is underway for the hitmen and the person who ordered the assassination. Police are also tracking the whereabouts of the AK-47 used in the attack.
“General Masemola has instructed NATJOINTS Co-chair Lieutenant General Tebello Mosikili to urgently convene a weekend NATJOINTS meeting to reassess and strengthen protection for commission officials and witnesses,” Mathe said.
News Junction (Gold Standard)
