Suspended Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) deputy chief Julius Mkhwanazi has been arrested in connection with the 2022 murder of businessman Emmanuel Mbense.

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) arrested Mkhwanazi earlier today alongside four other suspects. Among those arrested are former EMPD employee Kersha-Leigh Stols, serving EMPD officer Adrian MacKenzie and a South African Police Service (SAPS) officer. The arrests are linked to the alleged murder of Mbense and the disposal of his body in a dam in 2022.

The case follows testimony heard at the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry into alleged criminality, political interference and corruption within law enforcement agencies.

During his testimony before the commission, Marius van der Merwe, known as Witness D, alleged that Mbense's body was dumped in a dam on Mkhwanazi's instruction after the businessman had been killed.

Stols and MacKenzie were also arrested alongside Mkhwanazi in July in connection with the alleged theft of precious stones worth R14.9 million during what investigators believe was a fake police operation in Killarney, Johannesburg. That case remains before the courts.

This arrest is the latest in a series of criminal cases involving Mkhwanazi. He is also facing separate charges of fraud, corruption and defeating the ends of justice in unrelated matters. Mkhwanazi has previously denied wrongdoing in the cases against him.

Mkhwanazi remains suspended from the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department while disciplinary proceedings continue. The allegations against Mkhwanazi and the other suspects have not been tested in court. They remain presumed innocent until proven guilty.