Brakpan, Gauteng – In a shocking incident that has raised alarms about the safety of whistleblowers in South Africa, former Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) officer Marius van der Merwe was gunned down outside his home on Friday evening, December 5, 2025. The 41-year-old, widely known as “Vlam” and identified as Witness D in the ongoing Madlanga Commission of Inquiry, was killed in front of his family, sparking calls for enhanced protection for those exposing police corruption.
According to police reports, van der Merwe arrived home in Brenthurst, Brakpan, with his wife and children around 8:30 p.m. after dinner. As he stepped out of his vehicle to open the gate on Gauld Street, two assailants approached and shot him twice in the upper body. His wife remained unharmed, and the attackers fled the scene immediately after firing. Witnesses inside the house corroborated the sequence of events, describing a swift and targeted attack. Van der Merwe, who owned the QRF Task Team—a private security firm specializing in mining security—was pronounced dead at the scene.
This was not the first threat to van der Merwe’s life. Just two weeks prior, he survived an assassination attempt when two men in a bakkie attempted to ram him off the road in Brakpan, leading to a gunfight near the site of the demolished Plastic City informal settlement. Following that incident, van der Merwe had expressed concerns about being followed and believed his days were numbered. He reportedly hoped that going public with his experiences might offer some protection.
Van der Merwe’s death comes less than a month after his in-camera testimony on November 14, 2025, at the Madlanga Commission, which is probing allegations of criminality and corruption within the Ekurhuleni police ranks. As Witness D, he implicated suspended EMPD acting chief Julius Mkhwanazi in a 2022 cover-up involving the murder of a robbery suspect in Brakpan. Van der Merwe revealed that Mkhwanazi had ordered him to dispose of the suspect’s body after the individual died in police custody, allegedly from torture. Out of fear for his own safety, van der Merwe complied by dumping the body in a dam near Nigel. His testimony exposed a dark conspiracy within the department, including efforts to conceal the killing and protect high-ranking officials.
Beyond his role as a whistleblower, van der Merwe was celebrated in the Brakpan community as a hero in the battle against crime and illegal mining. He was among the first responders to the devastating 2022 tanker explosion in Boksburg and the gas explosion in the Angelo informal settlement. Through his security company, he actively worked to close illegal mining shafts on the East Rand, preventing Zama Zamas (illegal miners) from operating and disrupting organized crime networks. He led his QRF Task Team in a significant shootout with illegal miners at Putfontein and had been instrumental in cleaning up areas affected by factional wars among miners, such as Plastic City earlier in 2025. Van der Merwe once stated, “I will not rest until the scourge of illegal mining is solved,” reflecting his determination to address issues where authorities had fallen short.
The murder has intensified fears among other Madlanga Commission witnesses, who believe van der Merwe’s death is linked to his revelations and that he should have been provided with state protection. His actions, including recent shaft closures that inflicted substantial financial losses on criminal syndicates, may have made him a target for kingpins behind the Zama Zamas operations.
In response, Gauteng Acting Provincial Commissioner Major General Fred Kekana announced a full-scale investigation, mobilizing national and provincial forensic ballistics experts, the serious violent crime team, and collaborating with the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) to analyze evidence. “We have mobilised all the necessary resources… to ensure that no stone is left unturned and that no evidence that may assist the investigation is overlooked, uncollected or unanalysed,” Kekana said. Additionally, National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola has ordered an urgent meeting of the National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (NATJOINTS) to address and bolster security for commission officials and witnesses.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) has launched a manhunt for the suspects, with no arrests reported as of December 6, 2025. Organizations like the Whistleblower House have urged the government to prioritize whistleblower safety, emphasizing the urgent need for systemic reforms in light of van der Merwe’s killing.
This tragedy underscores the dangers faced by those combating corruption and organized crime in South Africa, leaving a community in mourning and a nation questioning the adequacy of protections for its brave informants.
