Eight members of South Africa’s special forces and one military police officer have been charged with the murder of Lt Col Frans Mathipa, a senior detective with an elite police unit, in August 2023. The men deny the charges. According to prosecution documents shared with the BBC, evidence suggests special forces personnel were responsible for Mathipa’s death, including vehicle registration records and tracking data placing a special forces vehicle at the scene of the shooting.
Mathipa had been investigating the alleged abduction and killing of Abdella Abadigga, an Ethiopian man with alleged ties to extremist organizations. Court documents indicate Abadigga was smuggled into South Africa by military and government officials to serve as an intelligence asset but subsequently went missing in December 2022. Mathipa had spent four months seeking evidence to build his case, which included CCTV footage from a shopping mall showing individuals and vehicles registered to a front company for special forces at the location where Abadigga was last seen.
When Mathipa was finally informed that documents related to his investigation would be provided, his commanding officer reported he expressed fear that he would be killed. Shortly after, Mathipa was shot dead while driving after receiving a call from someone claiming to have information about the case. Motorway toll footage allegedly shows that a black BMW trailing Mathipa moments before his death was also registered to the special forces front company.
Complications in the legal proceedings have prevented trial proceedings from advancing. Three of the six men who had bail revoked have refused to comply with court orders and remain employed by the army’s special forces, with one having been promoted since the investigation began. No trial date has been scheduled, and police documents reference a threat allegedly issued by special forces warning that additional investigating officers would be killed. Twelve military members have been arrested in total and face various charges including abduction, murder, fraud, and obstruction, though all deny the allegations.
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