Pretoria – President Cyril Ramaphosa has offered his “deep condolences” to the family, friends, and colleagues of murdered Marius van der Merwe, who testified in the Madlanga Commission as “Witness D”.
Van der Merwe, a Brakpan-based security industry member and former Ekhurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) official, was gunned down outside his home in Brakpan on Friday, 5 December 2025.
Witness D had returned home around 20:30 with his wife and two children when he was shot dead.
Police said his wife and children were unharmed in the shooting that involved an AK-47 rifle.
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Reacting to the cold-blooded murder, President Ramaphosa on Saturday, 6 December 2025, extended his deep condolences to the family of Van der Merwe and wished them strength for their recovery from this deadly trauma.
President Ramaphosa said: “While our law enforcement agencies establish the circumstances leading to this heinous act, I am appalled and saddened by this attack on a former public servant who recently served the cause of justice and integrity by testifying at the Madlanga Commission.”
President Ramaphosa established the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Criminality, Political Interference, and Corruption in the Criminal Justice System, better known as the Madlanga Commission, in July 2025.
President Ramaphosa said: “My thoughts are with the deeply traumatised family who came under attack last night.
“They faced death in circumstances that suggest Van der Merwe’s brave testimony angered elements in our society who want to undermine the rule of law and set back the quest for truth and consequences in the fight against corruption.
“Amid this trauma, we must remain resolute to end corruption and bring to justice those who have done wrong and are plotting to do more.
“As government, we will redouble our efforts to protect whistleblowers, including witnesses before the Madlanga Commission and the Commission itself, as they serve the nation with bravery in the face of criminal threats.”
In his testimony last month, November, Witness D, who testified incognito, implicated suspended EMPD Brigadier Julius Mkwanazi in a cover-up of a murder.
President Ramaphosa urges law enforcement agencies to undertake a thorough investigation and to ensure that the perpetrators face justice.
Meanwhile, the Madlanga commission said it notes with “profound sadness the brutal killing of one of its witnesses”.
In a statement released by spokesperson Jeremy Michaels, the Commission acknowledged Van Der Merwe’s contribution toward uncovering serious allegations of criminality and corruption in the EMPD.
“The commission extends its deepest condolences to the Van der Merwe family,” the statement said.
