Case file · IDAC vs Crime Intelligence
The Khumalo arrest and the Mokwele appointment - IDAC's case under the microscope
IDAC charged a Crime Intelligence boss over a civilian's appointment. Ten days of testimony left the commission asking what the crime actually was - and by the end the prosecuting authority had withdrawn the case, IDAC's head had resigned, one of her own prosecutors had testified against her, and three senior investigators were suspended.
What happened
The Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC) arrested Crime Intelligence head Lieutenant-General Dumisani Khumalo and several co-accused in June 2025 over what it called the irregular appointment of Brigadier Dineo Mokwele - a former BMW employee with a mechatronics-engineering diploma and an industrial-engineering degree - to a brigadier-level post running Crime Intelligence's Technical Support Services unit. Over eight days of Madlanga Commission testimony in July 2026 that case came apart in public. Lead investigator Brian Padayachee was cross-examined across Days 139-141: chairperson Mbuyiseli Madlanga called IDAC's core theory a 'quantum leap in logic', and Commissioner Sesi Baloyi SC put it that the founding complaint by MP Fadiel Adams read like a human-resources dispute with no allegation of corruption, and that Mokwele had been charged over conduct investigators believed she might commit in future. IDAC head Advocate Andrea Johnson then testified across six days (Days 144-146 and 148-150), conceding she had erred on IDAC's mandate, that investigators may have run unauthorised matters, and that she had never verified Mokwele's qualifications. On Day 148 the commission heard IDAC's own officials, in recorded voice notes, dispute the authenticity of a founding statement filed by chief investigator Dylan Perumal. Johnson resigned on 26 July; the President accepted it on 27 July, and the same day National Director of Public Prosecutions Advocate Andy Mothibi signed a provisional withdrawal, before plea, of the charges against Khumalo and his co-accused. Then the case turned inward: on Day 151 IDAC state advocate Drushantha Ramsamy testified against her own former head, playing a recording in which Johnson allegedly told her to leave the country rather than testify and describing a suspect list handed to her before the evidence was made. Within twenty-four hours the Justice Minister and the NDPP had suspended three senior IDAC investigators and placed the directorate under a six-month reset. A provisional withdrawal is not an acquittal, a suspension is not a finding, and nothing here is a finding; everyone named is presumed innocent.
Chain of command
Who’s involved
Lt-Gen Dumisani Khumalo
Head, SAPS Crime Intelligence
Arrested at OR Tambo International Airport on 26 June 2025 on fraud and corruption charges tied to the Mokwele appointment. The commission heard IDAC's investigator concede the case rested on sparse facts. On 27 July 2026 the NDPP signed a provisional withdrawal, before plea, of the charges against him and his co-accused. A provisional withdrawal is not an acquittal; the allegations were never tested and he is presumed innocent.
View full profile →Brigadier Dineo Mokwele
SAPS Crime Intelligence (Technical Support Services)
A former BMW employee holding a National Diploma in Mechatronics Engineering and an industrial-engineering degree, appointed to a brigadier-level technical post. IDAC alleged the appointment was irregular and part of an 'attempt to capture Crime Intelligence'; the commission questioned whether her appointment was a crime at all, and the NPA cited the evidence that she was in fact qualified in withdrawing the case. Untested; presumed innocent.
Fadiel Adams
MP; National Coloured Congress leader
Laid the complaints and signed the section 27 referral affidavit that led to the IDAC investigation. Commissioners noted his founding affidavit contained no allegation of corruption. Not a commission witness.
Brian Padayachee
Senior investigator, IDAC
The lead IDAC investigator, cross-examined across Days 139-141. He defended the case as backed by strong evidence and denied any 'cabal' or political interference, but struggled to justify the directorate's mandate to probe a SAPS appointment. On 30 July 2026 the NDPP suspended him pending a disciplinary process - a precautionary employment step, not a finding. Presumed innocent.
View full profile →Adv Andrea Johnson
Former head, IDAC
Headed the directorate that brought the case. Testifying across six days (Days 144-146 and 148-150) she conceded she had erred on IDAC's mandate, that investigators may have run unauthorised matters, and that she never verified Mokwele's qualifications before charges were filed. She resigned on 26 July 2026; the President accepted it with immediate effect on 27 July. The evidence leaders have signalled a Rule 3 notice so she can answer allegations made after her evidence closed. Untested; presumed innocent.
View full profile →Adv Drushantha Ramsamy
State advocate, IDAC
The prosecutor on the Crime Intelligence docket. One of the two IDAC officials whose recorded voice notes disputed the 'A1' statement on Day 148, she testified in person on Day 151 that Johnson personally drove an investigation called 'Project Diversion' against Masemola and Khumalo, and handed her a suspect list on 5 December 2024 saying 'Chief and I discussed who is to be included'. She played a recording of Johnson allegedly telling her to leave the country rather than testify. Her evidence is part-heard and untested; those she names are presumed innocent.
View full profile →Dylan Perumal
Chief investigator, IDAC
Filed the 'A1' supplementary statement attributed to complainant Fadiel Adams that two of his own colleagues disputed on tape. Witnesses have described instructions changing after Johnson consulted him. Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi suspended him on 30 July 2026 pending a disciplinary process. He has not yet given evidence, the allegations are untested, and he is presumed innocent.
Timeline
How the case unfolded
Mokwele takes up the Crime Intelligence post
Brigadier Dineo Mokwele, a former BMW employee with a mechatronics-engineering diploma and an industrial-engineering degree, is appointed to a brigadier-level post running Crime Intelligence's Technical Support Services unit, her appointment taking effect on 1 November 2024. IDAC would later allege the appointment was irregular; that allegation is untested.
Adams opens the dockets
MP Fadiel Adams opens a set of criminal dockets - in Cape Town and, shortly after, in Johannesburg (Orlando) - against senior police officers, according to the documentary record the commission walked through on 16 July 2026.
Complaint to the police minister
Adams emails the police minister alleging his dockets are being intercepted and the investigation compromised, triggering a same-day flurry of SAPS activity and a directive for a report to the national commissioner and minister within days.
Section 27 referral reaches IDAC
A referral letter is sent from the ministry to the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption asking it to investigate in terms of section 27 of the NPA Act - ten days before Adams's own referral affidavit is dated, an ordering the commission flagged.
SAPS: the dockets 'lack the elements of a crime'
A SAPS information note refers the dockets to legal services for an opinion, recording that the affidavits are 'basic' and lack the elements of a crime. Adams's section 27 referral affidavit is dated 21 November 2024.
IDAC opens its investigation
IDAC's preliminary investigation is approved, the team is briefed and investigators move to collect the dockets, a WhatsApp that day notifying General Khumalo that 'IDAC is here... pertaining to the Fadiel Adams dockets'. It is the same day as high-profile 'Big Five' arrests and search operations elsewhere in Gauteng.
SAPS legal opinion: no case made out
An internal SAPS legal opinion on the dockets concludes no case has been made out - even as the matter is already on IDAC's desk.
IDAC obtains Adams's A1 statement
IDAC obtains complainant Adams's A1 statement, which the commission and the evidence leaders agreed was 'rather sparse on fact'.
First summons - to BMW
IDAC's first section 28 summons in the docket is issued not to a police structure but to BMW, Mokwele's former employer; further summonses to the national commissioner and others follow in February and April 2025.
Khumalo arrested at OR Tambo
Crime Intelligence head Lieutenant-General Dumisani Khumalo is arrested at OR Tambo International Airport on fraud and corruption charges linked to the Mokwele appointment, alongside several co-accused.
The commission questions the whole case
Across Days 139-141, lead IDAC investigator Brian Padayachee is cross-examined. Madlanga calls IDAC's reasoning a 'quantum leap in logic'; Baloyi SC challenges an arrest over conduct 'yet to be committed' and notes the charge dates the offence to October 2024 though Mokwele only signed her contract that December. The Mail & Guardian reports the commission heard IDAC charged Khumalo 'on sparse facts'.
IDAC's head takes the stand
Over Days 144-146 IDAC head Advocate Andrea Johnson testifies. She concedes she erred in concluding the Khumalo matter fell within IDAC's mandate, objects to the suggestion the directorate 'solicited' Adams's affidavit while accepting investigator Dylan Perumal told him IDAC could not proceed without one, and answers Baloyi SC's charge that the directorate misused its power with 'no comment'.
Johnson resigns; the President accepts
Johnson writes to the NDPP on 26 July asking to be released from office within 24 hours. On 27 July, on a recommendation from Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi supported by NDPP Advocate Andy Mothibi, President Cyril Ramaphosa accepts her resignation with immediate effect under section 12(8)(a) of the NPA Act, waiving her notice period. She testifies at the commission the same day.
IDAC's own investigators dispute the A1 statement
On Day 148 the commission hears recorded voice notes in which two IDAC officials on the docket - state advocate Drushantha Ramsamy and investigator Mantsha Raphesu, whose names outlets reported inconsistently at the time and which the record has since settled - dispute that the A1 statement could have been obtained at the 6 January 2025 Cape Town interview with Adams, Ramsamy confirming only four supplementary statements were taken in her presence. Johnson accepts that 'procedurally it does not make sense'. Commissioner Sandile Khumalo SC says the material points to serious misconduct, and evidence leader Mahlape Sello SC asks whether the commission is 'confronted with a fraudulent Section 27'. The suggestion that the statement was fabricated is an untested allegation; Perumal is presumed innocent.
The NPA withdraws the case
NDPP Advocate Andy Mothibi completes his review and signs a PROVISIONAL withdrawal, before plea, of the corruption case against Khumalo and those arrested with him - Brigadier Dineo Mokwele, Major-General Philani Lushaba, Major-General Nosipho Madondo, Major-General Josias Lekalakala, Brigadier Phindile Ncube and Zwelithini Gabela. Outlets differ on whether the count is six or seven; the arrest record supports seven. NPA spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago: 'For now, with the facts before him, the NDPP decided to withdraw the matter after the review process.' The reported grounds are the commission's evidence that Mokwele did hold the qualifications and experience for the post, and the contradictions over how Adams's statements were obtained. Mothibi's letter records that the matter may not be re-enrolled, nor any fresh decision to prosecute taken, without his express written approval. The withdrawal must still be formalised in court.
The question turns to what IDAC did not investigate
On Day 149, testifying for the first time as IDAC's former head, Johnson is asked by Baloyi SC why the directorate never pursued allegations that Crime Intelligence funds were diverted to former police minister Bheki Cele. She says she was never briefed on it; Baloyi observes that 'on the extreme end, it speaks to selective investigations and prosecutions if this was overlooked'. Those allegations are untested and all named are presumed innocent.
Johnson concludes six days
On Day 150 Johnson finishes her evidence, closing on WhatsApp exchanges with suspended Crime Intelligence deputy head Major-General Feroz Khan - 'Hi gorgeous', arrangements to meet, invitations to his home - which she accepts show a 'very deep' personal relationship, having earlier described him as an affable acquaintance not seen in eighteen months. Her evidence also discloses that IDAC investigator Suneel Bellochun has been served with a notice of intended suspension over three complaints. Untested; both are presumed innocent.
The prosecutor testifies against the director
On Day 151 IDAC state advocate Drushantha Ramsamy takes the stand and plays a recording of a 26 July call in which Johnson allegedly says of the inquiry 'it's going to be a shitshow' and tells her, if summoned, 'leave the country'. She testifies that Johnson drove 'Project Diversion' against national commissioner General Fannie Masemola and Khumalo - an 'orchestrated attack' - and that on 5 December 2024 Johnson handed her a suspect list on a pinkish-purple sheet saying 'these are the suspects, Chief and I discussed who is to be included'. Seeing a section 27 document that differed from the affidavit she was given that day, 'my heart dropped to my stomach'. Her evidence is part-heard and resumes 4 August. All of it is untested; Johnson has not answered it and is presumed innocent.
Three investigators suspended; IDAC given six months to reform
Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi suspends IDAC chief investigator Dylan Perumal; NDPP Advocate Andy Mothibi suspends senior investigator Brian Padayachee and investigator Suneel Bellochun. All three are precautionary suspensions pending disciplinary processes, not findings. Kubayi and Mothibi place the directorate under a six-month reset: skills and lifestyle audits of all 212 employees by 14 August 2026, a review of IDAC cases before the courts, and a review of its standard operating procedures. Kubayi calls it 'a comprehensive reset of IDAC aimed at rebranding and repositioning the directorate'.
From the record
In their own words
Madlanga on IDAC's logic
“A quantum leap in logic.”
Baloyi on arresting for a future crime
“You formulated a charge, obtained a warrant of arrest, had people arrested and brought before the court, yet many months later you are saying, 'We don't know. Maybe she was going to do it in the future.'”
IDAC's own investigator on the disputed statement
“Why would two investigating officers sitting in the same boardroom have taken two different statements on the same day? I can confirm that in my presence there were only four statements taken.”
The NPA on withdrawing the case
“For now, with the facts before him, the NDPP decided to withdraw the matter after the review process.”
Sources & updates
Where this comes from
- BusinessDay - IDAC prosecutor Ramsamy accuses Andrea Johnson of orchestrating attack on police leaders (30 Jul 2026)
- Daily Maverick - 'It's going to be a shitshow': Andrea Johnson allegedly advises witness to flee (30 Jul 2026)
- News24 - Three IDAC investigators suspended pending outcome of disciplinary action (30 Jul 2026)
- TimesLIVE - Madlanga commission prompts audit, lifestyle checks for all IDAC employees (31 Jul 2026)
- Daily Maverick - 'You gorgeous': intimate messages between Feroz Khan and Andrea Johnson revealed (29 Jul 2026)
- News24 - 'What was IDAC's motive?' Padayachee grilled over appointment case (15 Jul 2026)
- IOL - Brigadier arrested for an alleged crime she had yet to commit (15 Jul 2026)
- IOL - Commission questions IDAC probe into Khumalo, Mokwele and others (16 Jul 2026)
- Mail & Guardian - IDAC charged Khumalo on sparse facts (16 Jul 2026)
- SABC News - Mokwele's appointment was an 'attempt to capture Crime Intelligence'
- News24 - Fraud case of crime intelligence boss, co-accused provisionally withdrawn (27 Jul 2026)
- TimesLIVE - NPA withdraws corruption case against General Khumalo and others (27 Jul 2026)
- BusinessDay - NPA drops case against crime intelligence boss Lt-Gen Khumalo as IDAC probe unravels (27 Jul 2026)
- IOL - Johnson concedes IDAC may have conducted unauthorised corruption probes (27 Jul 2026)
- IOL - IDAC investigator accused of fabricating MP's statements to build cases (28 Jul 2026)
- EWN - Mokwele's lawyers considering advising her to reject provisional withdrawal (28 Jul 2026)
- EWN - Presidency accepts IDAC head Andrea Johnson's resignation (27 Jul 2026)
This case file summarises testimony and evidence presented on the public record before the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry and related court proceedings. All persons named are presumed innocent; the charges are untested and are to be determined at trial.