'South Africa will never understand': IPID investigator details threats following Mbense case

Senior  Independent Police Investigative Directorate ( IPID) investigator Nomsa Masuku has told the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry that she received death threats while probing the murder of Emmanuel Mbense.

Mbense was allegedly killed by members of the Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department on 22 April 2022. His body was later found in a lake in Germiston. He had been linked to a business robbery in Boksburg the previous month. However, Masuku could not confirm whether the threats came from suspects in the Brakpan murder case.

Senior IPID investigator Nomsa Masuku became emotional on the stand when asked whether she had ever feared for her life. Masuku revealed that in December 2024, her car was shot at while she was driving on the N17 in Springs, with her children inside. However, she says she does not necessarily believe the Brakpan murder suspects were behind the attack, as she is handling several sensitive investigations.

“But we soldier on and we continue. It’s just that South Africa will never understand what we go through.”

In a separate incident, her son was shot and left wheelchair-bound. Masuku believes he was deliberately targeted because he had been driving her everywhere to ensure her safety.