President Cyril Ramaphosa has condemned the killing of a key witness who recently testified before the Madlanga Commission, describing the attack as a shocking attempt to intimidate those seeking justice. Marius van der Merwe, a Brakpan-based security industry figure and former Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department official, was shot several times outside his home on Friday evening in full view of his family. He had appeared before the commission only weeks earlier, where he gave evidence on alleged criminal networks and political interference in law-enforcement structures.
Van der Merwe was known in the commission as Witness D and testified in-camera with his identity protected. Van der Merwe had been under threat since giving explosive testimony before the commission, where he detailed how he was allegedly ordered to dispose of a body linked to a suspected cover-up involving senior Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department officials. In his evidence, he described being instructed either to dump the body in a dam or leave it inside a mine shaft.
In a strongly worded statement issued on Saturday, Ramaphosa extended his condolences to the bereaved family and said they had endured “a deadly trauma” that no family should ever face. “I am appalled and saddened by this attack on a former public servant who recently served the cause of justice and integrity,” he said. “My thoughts are with the deeply traumatised family who came under attack last night.” Ramaphosa suggested that the circumstances surrounding the killing pointed to an attempt to silence Van der Merwe for his testimony.
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