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Another cocaine theft — cop confirms R55m missing from R286m consignment seized by police

Daily Maverick · · 1187 words · By Caryn Dolley
State Corruption Criminal Justice System Failure Drug Trafficking
open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-05-11-another-cocaine-theft-cop-con…

psychologyDetected Techniques

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Loaded Language 70% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
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Causal Oversimplification 60% confidence
Assuming a single cause for a complex issue.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

18 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

check_circle Corroborated 8
schedule Pending 8
info Single Source 1
help Insufficient Evidence 1
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“Hawks officer Colonel Francois Steyn has told the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry how R55-million worth of cocaine went missing from a bigger consignment stored in a forensic laboratory.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources (Inside Politic, Google News overview, and a report on the Madlanga Commission) confirm that Colonel Francois Steyn testified about R55 million worth of cocaine (136.46kg) going missing from police custody/forensic laboratory.
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web search NEUTRAL — During the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry, it was revealed that 136.46kg of cocaine, valued at R55 million, has gone missing from police custody in Gauteng.
https://www.msn.com/en-za/news/other/madlanga-commission-pro…
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web search NEUTRAL — Appearing before the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry on Monday, Steyn detailed how 715 bricks of suspected cocaine with an estimated street value R300 million were seized from a shipping container truc…
https://insidepolitic.co.za/hawks-colonel-details-how-136kg-…
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web search NEUTRAL — Steyn tells Madlanga Commission that drug trade hard to infiltrate.Madlanga Commission: Probe launched into missing R55 million worth of cocaine from police custody.
https://news.google.com/stories/CAAqNggKIjBDQklTSGpvSmMzUnZj…
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“Hawks officer Colonel Francois Steyn confirmed this to the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry on Monday, 11 May 2026.”
CORROBORATED
Two separate sources explicitly confirm the date of testimony as Monday, 11 May 2026, before the Madlanga Commission.
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web search NEUTRAL — The Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Criminality, Political Interference, and Corruption in the Criminal Justice System, better known as the Madlanga Commission, is a public inquiry announced in Ju…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madlanga_Commission
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web search NEUTRAL — 11 May 2026, 11:41 [SAST]. Gauteng Hawks coordinator of narcotics cases, Colonel Francois Steyn has told the Madlanga Commission that the illicit drug trade is difficult to penetrate.
https://www.sabcnews.com/sabcnews/steyn-tells-madlanga-commi…
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web search NEUTRAL — The Bulrushes > Featured Video > WATCH: Madlanga Commission Hears Testimony From Colonel Francois Steyn.Staff Writer. Published: May 11, 2026.
https://thebulrushes.com/2026/05/11/watch-madlanga-commissio…
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“Steyn heads the Gauteng Hawks’ West Rand Serious Organised Crime Unit and is also the Hawks narcotics case coordinator in that province.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources identify Colonel Francois Steyn as the commander of the Gauteng West Rand Hawks and the coordinator of narcotics cases in Gauteng.
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web search NEUTRAL — Colonel Francois Steyn, the commander of the Gauteng West Rand Hawks, has outlined how a substantial portion of 715kg of cocaine seized during a major 2021 drug bust in southern Johannesburg later wen…
https://insidepolitic.co.za/hawks-colonel-details-how-136kg-…
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web search NEUTRAL — Steyn said that Gauteng Hawks head Major-General Ebrahim Kadwa phoned him and informed him that he and his team needed to attend a narcotics crime scene. The scene was at Aeroton, where authorities fo…
https://iol.co.za/news/2026-05-11-how-cops-became-suspects-i…
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web search NEUTRAL — Gauteng Hawks coordinator of narcotics cases, Colonel Francois Steyn has told the Madlanga Commission that the illicit drug trade is difficult to penetrate.
https://www.sabcnews.com/sabcnews/steyn-tells-madlanga-commi…
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“a R200-million cocaine consignment that was stolen from the Hawks building in Port Shepstone, KwaZulu-Natal, in June 2021”
CORROBORATED
Three independent sources confirm a R200 million cocaine consignment was intercepted in June 2021 and subsequently stolen from a Hawks building in Port Shepstone, KZN.
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web search NEUTRAL — In June 2021, the Hawks received intelligence about a suspicious shipment at the Isipingo Depot, south of Durban, where cocaine valued at R200 million was discovered inside a shipping container.
https://www.ewn.co.za/2026/05/05/madlanga-commission-cocaine…
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web search NEUTRAL — The R200m worth of cocaine stolen from the Hawks office building in Port Shepstone, on the KwaZulu-Natal south coast, at the weekend was seized during an operation in June. November 10, 2021 at 1:32 p…
https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2021-11-10-r20…
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web search NEUTRAL — In June 2021, a R200m cocaine consignment linked to transnational traffickers was intercepted in KwaZulu-Natal. Months later, it was stolen from an unprotected Hawks building.
https://www.namibian.com.na/from-bust-to-heist-hawks-officer…
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“On 9 July 2021, a cocaine shipment weighing 715.86kg and worth around R286-million was intercepted in Aeroton, an industrial area in Johannesburg.”
CORROBORATED
Sources confirm a cocaine seizure in Aeroton, Johannesburg on July 9, 2021. While the exact weight (715.86kg) and value (R286m) vary slightly across reports (some say 700kg or R300m), the core facts of the date, location, and approximate scale are corroborated.
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web search NEUTRAL — He testified that the Aeroton shipment was recorded at 579.4kg upon inspection, with 136.46kg missing. He further confirmed that bags containing cocaine had visible cuts when they arrived at the foren…
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/madlanga-commission-aeroton-c…
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web search NEUTRAL — He noted that on July 9, 2021 a few weeks after the 541kg cocaine seizure officials seized 700kg of cocaine in Aeroton, Johannesburg. The Aeroton cocaine exhibits were transferred to FSL on July 19, 2…
https://africannewsagency.com/top-cop-claims-r200m-kzn-hawks…
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web search NEUTRAL — The cocaine shipment was intercepted in the Atlantic Ocean by Spanish authorities while the vessel was reportedly heading towards Libya. The Benghazi-Bound Ship seized by the Spanish Civil Guard was c…
https://northafricapost.com/96908-libya-launches-probe-after…
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“Four suspects were arrested: Warrant Officer Marumo Mogana, a Crime Intelligence officer; Warrant Officer Steve Pakula, an Organised Crime Unit member; Samuel Mashaba, who was acting deputy director of Gauteng’s community safety department; and businessman Tumelo Nku.”
CORROBORATED
Legal notices and news reports identify Warrant Officer Marumo Mogana, Warrant Officer Steve Pakula, Samuel Mashaba, and Tumelo Nku as the individuals arrested in connection with the case.
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web search NEUTRAL — Warrant is an American glam metal band formed in 1984 in Hollywood, Los Angeles, that experienced success from 1989 to 1996, with five albums reaching international sales of over 10 million.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warrant_(American_band)
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web search NEUTRAL — The meaning of WARRANT is sanction, authorization; also : evidence for or token of authorization. How to use warrant in a sentence.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/warrant
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web search NEUTRAL — WARRANT definition: authorization, sanction, or justification. See examples of warrant used in a sentence.
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/warrant
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“The court case against them was subsequently withdrawn.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple legal sources (BDK Attorneys and LinkedIn) explicitly state that the criminal matter against Mogana, Pakula, and Mashaba was withdrawn by the state.
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web search NEUTRAL — Our clients, Warrant Officer Marumo Mogana, a member of the SAPS Crime Intelligence Unit, Warrant Officer Steve Pakula, member of the Organised Crime Unit, Acting Deputy Director Samuel Mashaba of the…
https://za.linkedin.com/posts/bdk-attorneys-jhb_criminal-mat…
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web search NEUTRAL — Our clients, Warrant Officer Marumo Mogana, a member of the SAPS Crime Intelligence Unit, Warrant Officer Steve Pakula, member of the Organised Crime Unit, Acting Deputy Director Samuel Mashaba of the…
https://www.facebook.com/BDKAttorney/photos/criminal-matter-…
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web search NEUTRAL — According to their lawyer, they were Warrant Officer Marumo Mogana, a Crime Intelligence officer; Warrant Officer Steve Pakula, an Organised Crime Unit member; Samuel Mashaba who was acting deputy ...
https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2025-08-12-suspiciou…
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“9 July 2021, the cocaine was intercepted and taken to the Booysens police station in Johannesburg”
SINGLE SOURCE
While the interception date of July 9, 2021, is corroborated, the specific detail that it was taken to the Booysens police station is mentioned in a context relating to the Aeroton bust, but not independently corroborated by multiple distinct sources as a confirmed sequence of events.
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web search NEUTRAL — Booysens was laid out in 1887 on the eponymous farm of J.A. Booysens.[2] Over the course of the 20th century, the population grew more Afrikaans-speaking over time, from 442 Afrikaans to 754 English-s…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Booysens_(Johannesburg)
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web search NEUTRAL — The consignment was intercepted on 9 July 2021 and later transferred to the forensic science laboratory of the South African Police Service (Saps).Steyn revealed to the commission that no arrests have…
https://www.citizen.co.za/news/madlanga-commission-aeroton-c…
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web search NEUTRAL — Police have since gathered that the cargo truck which was robbed of the cocaine was travelling from Durban harbour, and was followed by the robbers’ vehicles from the N3 near Leondale to its destinati…
https://iol.co.za/news/2021-07-09-joburg-cops-arrested-in-r2…
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“12 July 2021, the cocaine consignment was moved to the police college in Pretoria”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding the movement of the consignment to a police college in Pretoria on July 12, 2021.
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“19 July 2021, the cocaine consignment was taken to a forensic science laboratory.”
CORROBORATED
Two sources confirm that the Aeroton cocaine exhibits were transferred to the forensic science laboratory (FSL) on July 19, 2021.
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“In early February 2025, the brigadier contacted Steyn... She further indicated that the consignment now only weighed 579.40kg, and hence that 136.46kg was unaccounted for.”
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“Crime Intelligence officer Feroz Khan and Gauteng Hawks head Ebrahim Kadwa. Both hold the rank of Major General.”
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“Khan and Kadwa were arrested over the weekend in a separate matter and made their first court appearance in Kempton Park on Monday, facing charges relating to illicit precious metals.”
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“They were released from custody, along with a third accused, on R20,000 bail each.”
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“in June 2023... he received a letter from the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) asking him to make a warning statement”
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“in June 2024, Ipid recommended that disciplinary steps be taken against him and a few others who had been at the Aeroton scene.”
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“The chairperson of Khan’s disciplinary hearing was KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi”
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“Mkhwanazi... alleged a drug cartel had infiltrated the criminal justice system, politics and private security.”
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info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.