Under Siege: Lt‑Gen Shadrack Sibiya’s Home Raided –I Feel Betrayed, My Family Is Traumatised

Suspended Deputy National Police Commissioner for Crime Detection Lt‑Gen Shadrack Sibiya.

By Mpho Dube, Editor‑in‑Chief The Azanian

Suspended Deputy National Police Commissioner for Crime Detection, Lt‑Gen Shadrack Sibiya, stepped out of his Centurion home on Thursday afternoon to find his living room emptied of the armed officers who had just finished a search‑and‑seizure operation.

The raid, carried out by the National Intervention Unit (NIU) and officers from the KwaZulu‑Natal division, left his children locked in a bedroom and his sickly mother watching in horror.

Several electronic devices – cellphones, a laptop and other gadgets – were carted away, stripping Sibiya of the tools he needs to prepare for the looming Madlanga commission of inquiry and the parliamentary ad‑hoc committee probing corruption in the criminal‑justice system.

Speaking to reporters, a visibly shaken Sibiya called the operation “traumatic” and said it was a deliberate attempt to “disrupt” and “confuse” him ahead of his scheduled testimony on Monday. “I am under siege here… my life and that of my family are in danger,” he warned, accusing senior officials of trying to push him out.

The timing coincides with Sibiya’s suspension over his order to withdraw Political Killings Task Team (PKTT) dockets from KwaZulu‑Natal to SAPS headquarters in Pretoria. National Commissioner Gen Fannie Masemola and KZN Provincial Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi have publicly accused him of stalling investigations, while Sibiya claims the raid is part of a broader campaign of intimidation.

Sibiya is slated to appear before an internal disciplinary hearing and will testify before the Madlanga commission next week. His legal team has already signaled they will challenge the raid’s legality, arguing it undermines his ability to defend himself.

The story is still unfolding, but one thing is clear: the raid on Sibiya’s home has thrown the already volatile power struggle within South Africa’s police leadership into the national spotlight, raising urgent questions about political interference and the safety of senior officers who dare to challenge the status quo.