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Serge Cabonge under investigation by Political Killings Task Team after court recording
The businessman was reportedly questioned by investigators as scrutiny intensifies over his alleged links to former police deputy commissioner Shadrack Sibiya and claims about police connections and withdrawn criminal charges.
PKTT investigates Cabonge
Businessman and socialite Serge Cabonge is being investigated by the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT), with reports indicating that he was brought in for questioning on Monday, 12 October 2026.
The investigation comes amid growing scrutiny of his alleged connections to former deputy national police commissioner Shadrack Sibiya and businessman Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala, whose name has featured in separate investigations into alleged corruption and criminal activity.
According to eNCA, Cabonge was questioned by investigators, although the precise status of the investigation and whether he was questioned as a suspect or as someone with information relevant to the probe have not been publicly established. Being questioned does not, in itself, mean that a person has committed an offence.
The development follows a recorded telephone conversation attributed to Cabonge that was played during Sibiya’s bail proceedings at the Randburg Magistrate’s Court on 13 October.
The recording brought renewed attention to Cabonge’s claims about his police connections and his alleged involvement in helping people facing criminal charges.
The recording that put Cabonge in the spotlight
The approximately 25-minute recording featured a conversation between Cabonge and a man identified in court as Mr M, the father of a 16-year-old girl who is one of the complainants in the criminal case against Sibiya.
During the conversation, Cabonge allegedly described how he used his police connections to assist the family of a man he said was a former judge president. According to his account, the man’s daughter had faced criminal charges following a collision in Sandton involving a woman carrying a child.
Cabonge claimed that he contacted people he knew in the police service to establish details of the case and that the charges were subsequently withdrawn within about a week.
The identity of the man he referred to was not disclosed in the recording, and the allegations have not been established as fact.
The recording has raised questions about whether personal connections within the police service may have been used to influence the handling of criminal cases.
It is this broader concern about alleged police influence and possible interference in criminal matters that has drawn attention to Cabonge’s statements.
Cabonge denies being a middleman for Sibiya and Matlala
The recording also touched on the relationship between Sibiya and Matlala, a businessman who has faced separate criminal allegations.
Cabonge discussed alleged dealings between the two men and referred to suspended police sergeant Fannie Nkosi as a person through whom communications had taken place.
In the recording, Cabonge pushed back against suggestions that he had collected money from Matlala to pass on to Sibiya.
“People think I collect money for Sibiya. I don’t collect any fucking cents for Sibiya,” he is heard saying.
He also alleged that he had been removed from the communication between the two men, saying that they were communicating through Nkosi.
The claims are significant because investigators and the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry have been examining allegations of improper relationships between police officials, businesspeople and individuals facing criminal investigations.
Madlanga Commission wants Cabonge’s statement
The PKTT investigation is not the only development involving Cabonge.
On 13 October, the Madlanga Commission announced that it intended to obtain a statement from him following the recording played during Sibiya’s bail proceedings.
Commission spokesperson Jeremy Michaels said: “The Commission will engage with Mr Cabonge and obtain his statement as part of its broad investigation into matters falling within its terms of reference and his mention of the Commission in the recording.”
The commission said it would not comment further at that stage.
The inquiry was established to investigate alleged criminality, corruption and political interference within South Africa’s criminal justice system. Its hearings have brought renewed public attention to allegations concerning police officials, private business interests and the possible misuse of positions of authority.
Cabonge’s remarks are relevant to the commission because he referred to a person he claimed was connected to its proceedings and described how he allegedly helped that person’s family with a criminal case.
The commission has not publicly established that the alleged intervention was unlawful, nor has it identified the person referred to in the recording.
What happens next?
The investigation places Cabonge under increased scrutiny as authorities seek to establish the circumstances behind his claims and the nature of his alleged connections.
The key questions are whether his account of the withdrawn charges can be independently verified, whether any police official improperly influenced the matter, and whether further evidence supports the claims made in the recording.
Economy
The Scorpion Kings’ burgers are all sold out, but the Scorpion Kings Live are back tonight on SABC 1
Before DJ Maphorisa and Kabza De Small were filling FNB Stadium with Amapiano, there was the hustle – and for Maphorisa, part of that hustle involved food.
Long before the Scorpion Kings name became synonymous with some of South Africa’s biggest musical moments, Maphorisa was finding different ways to make money while pursuing his music career.
“I used to deejay on weekends and I opened a tuck-shop at home just to have a cash flow and at school I used to sell sweets and lollipops,” Maphorisa said.
He explained that the money helped him save for his first car and travel between Pretoria and Johannesburg while working towards his music career.
So, years later, seeing the producer put his name to a burger collaboration feels like a rather delicious full-circle moment.
The Scorpion Kings – Maphorisa and Kabza De Small – teamed up with RocoMamas in September for the limited-edition King’s Feast, a menu inspired by their personalities, their music and plenty of South African flavour.
The collaboration ran until 30 September, meaning the burgers have now officially left the menu – but having tasted them, there is plenty to talk about.
Madumane Double – big, saucy and properly Mzansi
The DJ Maphorisa-inspired Madumane Double did not arrive quietly.
The burger featured a 200g double beef smash, chakalaka, chorizo and cheese, all packed into a brioche bun. RocoMamas positioned it as the “main drop” of the collaboration.
The first bite was very much about the beef, but then the chakalaka came through with that familiar South African kick.
Spicy, savoury and gloriously messy, it was the sort of burger that requires you to abandon any plans of eating neatly.
And there was something particularly kasi about that combination.
Chakalaka was not there as a gimmick. It gave the burger a distinctly South African personality, taking the familiar smashburger format and throwing in a flavour many Mzansi households know very well.
RocoMamas described the collaboration as burgers built by the two artists “the way they build a track – layer on layer until it hits.”
That description actually makes sense.
Papta Sting brings the heat
Then came Kabza De Small’s Papta Sting – and this one was for the spice chaser.
The burger combined southern-fried chicken with atchar and jalapeños on a brioche bun. RocoMamas summed it up neatly: “Sweet on the way in, sting on the way out.”
And that is pretty much the assignment.
The chicken brings the crunch, the atchar delivers that sweet-sour South African flavour, and then the jalapeño arrives with a little extra attitude.
It is the kind of burger that makes you pause after the first bite and ask yourself whether you really want another one.
Naturally, you do.
Kabza’s association with the burger also made sense because the collaboration was built around flavours that feel familiar to South African palates rather than trying too hard to reinvent the wheel.
It tasted like the kasi – with a RocoMamas twist
The King’s Feast was at its most interesting when it leaned into flavours that South Africans already know.
Chakalaka. Atchar. Pap balls. Big portions. Messy eating. Food made for sharing.
RocoMamas itself described the campaign as being inspired by the “grootmans of the yanos”, while its promotional material leaned heavily into the idea of bringing South African flavour to the menu.
That made the collaboration feel like more than simply putting two famous names on burgers.
Amapiano has always been closely connected to place, community, language, fashion, dance and everyday South African life. The King’s Feast borrowed from that same cultural vocabulary and put it on a plate.
And yes, chakalaka on a burger works.
There, we said it.
The timing was perfect
The RocoMamas collaboration formed part of the build-up to Scorpion Kings Live at FNB Stadium on 19 September.
RocoMamas was an official activation partner for the massive concert, alongside brands including SABC1, which was the official broadcast partner.
The King’s Feast was available throughout September before ending on 30 September.
So if you were planning to rush to RocoMamas today for a Madumane Double or Papta Sting, unfortunately, you have missed the boat – or in this case, the burger.
But there is another Scorpion Kings moment waiting tonight.
From the burger to the big screen
Scorpion Kings Live is making its television debut on SABC1 today, Saturday, 3 October, at 20:00.
The concert, which was staged at FNB Stadium on 19 September, will be broadcast for the first time on television, with a simultaneous broadcast on SABC Plus. SABC1 confirmed the broadcast as part of its partnership with the event.
For viewers who were not inside FNB Stadium, tonight is the chance to experience the scale of the show from home.
SABC Video Entertainment Marketing Manager Dichaba Phalatse described the concert as “more than a concert” and “a defining South African cultural moment”, saying SABC1 wanted to bring the energy of FNB Stadium to audiences across the country.
The Scorpion Kings themselves said: “Scorpion Kings Live was too special to be experienced for one night only.”
They added: “Now, for the first time, people across South Africa can relive that experience from wherever they are.”
And that is where the RocoMamas collaboration comes full circle.
The burgers may have disappeared from the menu, but the music is still very much on.
So, what was the foodie verdict?
The Madumane Double was the heavyweight – beefy, saucy, cheesy and carrying enough chakalaka to remind you that this was never meant to be just another burger.
The Papta Sting was the cheekier one – crispy chicken, atchar and jalapeño bringing the sweet-and-sting combination promised in the name.
Neither needed to pretend to be fine dining.
They were burgers.
Big, messy, youthful burgers with a distinctly South African accent.
And perhaps that was the point.
Maphorisa went from selling sweets and running a tuck shop to becoming one of the biggest names in Amapiano. Now his name has been attached to a burger loaded with chakalaka.
Not a bad journey.
The King’s Feast may have left RocoMamas on 30 September, but the Scorpion Kings are back on screen tonight.
So get your snacks sorted, turn up the volume and settle in for FNB Stadium from your sofa.
Just don’t blame us if watching Kabza and Maphorisa perform makes you hungry.
That part is on you.
