Pretoria – Allegations have surfaced of a possible police cover-up of deadly illegal street races along Steve Biko Road in Gezina, Tshwane.
Phillip Bezuidenhout, who was a passenger in a Honda Ballade involved in a drag race last month, 3 May 2026, died after the car collided with an uninvolved motorist’s Renault before crashing into a pole.
The Honda Ballade driver, Willie Momberg, and the unnamed Renault driver survived.
AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit on Friday, 12 June 2026, stated that the crash in Pretoria has not only exposed an alleged South African Police Service (SAPS) cover-up to protect those involved, but also possible complicity in organising and overseeing the weekly events.
“New footage that has emerged shows a person –whose identity is known – assaulting the injured Renault driver in front of SAPS officers who were, inexplicably, on the scene within seconds of the crash,” the Unit said.
“It is alleged that some SAPS officers may have been part of a network of people involved in illegal racing and the organisation of these events.”
The Unit said the information and evidence now provided to the SAPS could explain how the active involvement of some law enforcement officers may “have contributed to this thriving and deadly subculture of fast cars and high-powered engines”.
In a letter to the SAPS, Advocate Gerrie Nel, head of AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit, says the race participants show no fear of the authorities clamping down on their illegal racing.
“The failure of law enforcement to prevent the practice of holding road races on a public street, while other vehicles still have access to that street, is not only reprehensible, but may also support an argument that law enforcement was complicit in the reckless lawlessness that has yet again claimed a life,” wrote Advocae Nel.
“Members of the public must be able to use public roads at any time of day without fear that racing vehicles will endanger their safety.”
Video footage showing a maroon Honda Ballade colliding at high speed with a white Renault has been widely shared on social media.
“Several of the regular participants who appear to be publicly associated with some of the SAPS officers openly brag about their conduct on social media, and even invite others to join by providing the dates, times, and locations of the races,” asserted the Unit.
Barry Bateman, spokesperson for the Unit, said hundreds of spectators gather every Sunday to witness these illegal races, creating the inescapable conclusion that law enforcement was “involved or at least turning a blind eye” to it.
“This street race on this specific road was not a once-off or exceptional occurrence, but rather part of a well-established and organised practice of Sunday road races allowed and even supported by members of the SAPS.”
That section of road has been used for illegal street racing for decades and has seen numerous deadly crashes, yet the activity has continued unabated.
Bateman said the information and evidence “we have gathered reveals a well-documented – and even arrogant – display of lawlessness on public roads by a group of people linked through a street-racing subculture that is thriving in the north of Pretoria”.
He said the social media accounts of several participants provide evidence of, not only their races on Steve Biko Road, but also general reckless and dangerous driving in their high-powered vehicles.
“Considering the speed and efficiency with which the SAPS recently secured social media evidence in a well-publicised case against a politician, the public must expect the same urgency in securing evidence where the conduct in question could kill or maim innocent motorists and pedestrians,” Bateman said.
“Failure to do so will surely confirm suspicions of police involvement or a cover-up.”
Meanwhile, the Bezuidenhout family was informed that the SAPS was pursuing a culpable homicide case against the driver of the Renault.
