Sibiya is facing serious charges, including grooming a 16-year-old girl and raping an 18-year-old. He was denied bail on 20 October and is currently held at Kgosi Mampuru Correctional Facility. He resigned from the South African Police Service on 12 October at the beginning of a disciplinary hearing.
Matlala recounted an incident where he accompanied Sibiya to Midrand to view a plot of land. Sibiya asked Matlala to purchase the plot, priced at R4 million. Matlala stated he lacked the funds but could help once he received payments from SAPS. Sibiya suggested Matlala pay for the plot as funds came in.
Matlala claims he can identify the property and its seller, who later visited his office inquiring about a R400,000 payment for the land. This prompted Matlala to realise he was being extorted, leading him to abandon the purchase.
He also described two meetings with former police minister Bheki Cele. The first occurred at the Beverly Hills Hotel on 23 December 2024, where he expressed concerns about the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT) and events during a police raid at his home. Cele promised to assist, referring to Matlala’s situation as being part of a “Zulu War,” a comment Matlala did not understand.
During a later meeting at his flat in Johannesburg, Cele made calls to Lieutenant-General Chamane and Dumisani Khumalo, the PKTT project manager. Cele advised that Matlala withdraw a civil theft case against the PKTT, alleging officers stole from him during the raid.
Matlala confirmed a relationship with Brigadier Rachel Matjeng, whom he met during a SAPS visit. Matjeng had obtained his phone number through a friend, leading to their romantic involvement. He admitted to making three payments of R100,000 each towards her car repairs, totalling R300,000, after Major-General Thema informed him that Matjeng oversaw medical screenings for forensic personnel.
Matjeng is under investigation for fraud related to the R360 million Medicare24 contract and has been dismissed from the SAPS. Matlala alleges she later asked him to help Colonel Mngadi, her colleague on the bid evaluation committee, who needed R20,000 due to financial difficulties. Matlala agreed and gave the cash to Matjeng to pass on.
Matlala noted that he was introduced to Major-General Thema during the Covid-19 pandemic, understanding her to be responsible for police colleges. Thema tried to arrange Covid screenings for SAPS trainees through Medicare, though this did not come to fruition. Matlala claims Thema advised him to apply to lease the SAPS hospital in Tshwane and provided a proxy for financial benefits on her behalf, intending to maximize student usage of the hospital facilities.
