National Commissioner of Correctional Services, Makgothi Thobakgale, confirmed the incident during a media briefing on Tuesday 4 November.

The attack – which occurred last week – comes about a month after the authorities’ announcement of a management intervention at the prison in a bid to address systemic failures at the facility.

“Correctional officials Mr Wuve Rubushe and Mr Mendo Somdyala were performing routine duties in Unit D3 of the Remand Detention Facility, shortly after breakfast had been served. At approximately 08:47, remand detainee Bonginkosi Jali, aged 46 and detained for theft, requested to use the toilet facility and was unlocked from Communal Cell 208.

“At that time, two other remand detainees, Ricardo Krotz, aged 28 and charged under POCA-related offences, and Andre Gouws, aged 22 and detained for murder, were in the passage performing cleaning duties. Tragically, all three were armed with sharpened objects.

“The assault began when Jali emerged from the toilet facility and attacked Mr Somdyala, stabbing him. Despite his injuries, Mr Somdyala managed to run to the unit office for assistance, where Mr Rubushe was stationed. The three detainees pursued him into the office and continued their attack on both officials,” Thobakgale said.

Another official, who arrived at the scene, called for backup and the additional officials disarmed and removed the attackers.

“Force had to be used to stop the assault. The detainees were immediately taken to the facility hospital, treated by the resident doctor, and later transferred to an external hospital. Sadly, Bonginkosi Jali and Andre Gouws died on the same day, while Ricardo Krotz succumbed to his injuries on 31 October 2025.

“Both officials were also taken to Constantiaberg Hospital for further medical care and have since been discharged. We remain deeply thankful for their bravery and continue to support them and their families as they recover from this traumatic event,” the Commissioner said.

He added that the “use of force in this case was unavoidable to preserve life”.

“Every incident involving force is subject to full investigation to ensure compliance with the Correctional Services Act.

“Transparency and accountability remain cornerstones of our operations, and all relevant oversight bodies and the families of the deceased have been informed,” the Commissioner noted.

Cracking down

Thobakgale noted that the initial management intervention at the facility “disrupted entrenched practices and illicit networks that had thrived in the absence of proper control”.

“This inevitably provoked resistance and resentment among those who had benefited from the previous state of affairs, creating tensions that, regrettably, culminated in the incident of 29 October 2025,” he said.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the incident was gang-related and targeted at asserting dominance in the facility, following “the department’s renewed enforcement of discipline and order”.

“Jali was reportedly a self-proclaimed “General” of the 26 Gang [and] this incident serves as a stark reminder of the deep-rooted gangsterism challenge that continues to threaten safety within correctional facilities.

“Gang activities undermine security, disrupt rehabilitation, and endanger lives. Let me be clear: gangsterism has no place in our correctional system. It destroys the very essence of rehabilitation and corrodes the moral fabric of our centres.

“The department has been implementing a comprehensive Gang Combating Strategy focusing on intelligence-led operations to detect and neutralise gang influence, enhanced staff training to identify and prevent gang mobilisation, stricter internal controls to close security loopholes, and expanded rehabilitation and reintegration programmes offering inmates education, vocational training, and psychological support to break free from gang culture,” he said.

A new Area Commissioner – Ntomboxolo Kungune – has been appointed to the Pollsmoor facility to “reinforce leadership stability”.

“Her extensive experience, most recently as Area Commissioner of Drakenstein, will be invaluable in steering this Management Area toward renewal and improved performance. The team deployed by Head Office on 29 September 2025 will remain on site to sustain the momentum, oversee the implementation of corrective measures, and guide the transition toward a secure, compliant, and rehabilitative environment.

“We must confront this challenge not with fear, but with resolve and unity. Our mission remains clear – to restore order, uphold safety, and promote rehabilitation. Together, as a department and as a nation, we can defeat gangsterism, rebuild trust, and ensure that correctional centres remain places of transformation rather than turmoil,” Thobakgale concluded.

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Janho Engelbrecht, DA Spokesperson on Correctional Services, said the two inmate deaths at Pollsmoor Correctional Centre “are a tragic yet predictable consequence of a facility and a regional management structure in complete crisis.”

“Our correctional facilities are severely overcrowded, with almost 60,000 remand detainees, and they are financially crippled by terrible budget planning, inflated unfit-for-purpose contracts, and misappropriated funds,” Engelbrecht said.

The DA therefore calls for a full scale, national spending review across the entire Correctional Service Department. The DA will write to Minister Dr Pieter Groenewald to ask him for the full spending review to take place without delay.

The review must account for the spending that is taking place to house tens of thousands of remand detainees, who are not yet convicted of crimes, because the Department of Justice has lost the capacity to speedily handle criminal trials, Engelbrecht continued.

“The incident at Pollsmoor thrusts it back into the spotlight for all the wrong reasons, mere weeks after the facility was embroiled in the scandal of two erroneous releases.”

This is not an isolated incident, the DA said. “It forms a devastating pattern of failure across the Western Cape Region, coming hot on the heels of similar events at the Oudtshoorn facility. The management at Pollsmoor, the Area and the Regional level have proven themselves to be fundamentally incapable of ensuring basic safety, security, and order. The DA will not stand by while this vital institution crumbles. South Africa cannot have a Correctional Service that allows inmates to be killed, or to escape, on a regular basis.”

The DA has also submitted urgent parliamentary questions to Groenewald, demanding a full and transparent account of the circumstances that led to these two deaths at Pollsmoor.

“We will intensify our oversight visits and use every parliamentary mechanism at our disposal to hold the executive and the department’s failing management to account. The blood of these inmates is on the hands of a negligent management structure and a national department that has abandoned its duty to protect both its citizens and those in its care,” Engelbrecht said.

The budget available to the Department of Correctional Services must be fully reviewed, without delay, so that all waste and all misappropriation can be immediately stopped, to spend on the fundamentals of safer and more secure prisons, Engelbrecht concluded.

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This after security breaches at the facility revealed weaknesses in core operational procedures – compelling the National Commissioner to intervene.

“In recent months, Pollsmoor has experienced a series of serious security breaches that exposed weaknesses in the management of warrants, court appearances, and inmate identification processes.

“These incidents cannot be taken lightly, as they have the potential to undermine public confidence in the correctional system and compromise the broader criminal justice value chain,” Thobakgale noted.

The incidents include cases of mistaken release and an inmate assuming the identity of another.

Furthermore, in July, a raid at the facility led by the National Commissioner uncovered more than 110 cell phones, sim cards, sharp objects, drug paraphernalia, drugs and cash.

“[The] erroneous release of remand detainee John Henry Mpelo due to failures in verifying warrants, the mistaken release of Inganathi ‘Thembalethu’ Daba under another detainee’s identity, and the case of Jordan Adams, who exploited weaknesses in record management to assume a false identity.

“While all three offenders were subsequently re-arrested, these breaches point to deep systemic vulnerabilities in fingerprint verification, record reconciliation, and overall operational discipline. Investigations are underway, and there will be accountability and consequences for those found to have neglected their duties,” he said.

The management intervention is aimed at instituting “corrective measures, restore stability, and strengthen management practices at the facility”.

The intervention will be led by highly experienced department officials, Abel Mashaba and Michael Mafukata who will be deployed to Pollsmoor until the facility regains its footing.

“Pollsmoor is one of South Africa’s big five correctional facilities, strategically located to service numerous courts in the Cape Town metropole and surrounding districts. Its role in the criminal justice system is pivotal.

“Any instability here has a ripple effect across law enforcement, the judiciary, and community safety. We cannot afford to allow breaches of this magnitude to continue unchecked. This intervention is therefore not only necessary, but non-negotiable,” Thobakgale explained.

He added that the intervention is part of a broader plan to strengthen capacity and management at facilities across the country.

“The department has been making targeted appointments to stabilise facilities and strengthen governance structures. These interventions are not limited to management levels alone but also focusing on growing the frontline workforce that powers the correctional system.

“These developments demonstrate the zeal with which we are working to increase the pool of correctional officials, strengthen institutional capacity, and stabilise facilities. The intervention here at Pollsmoor must be understood in this broader context.

“We are committed to decisive action whenever lapses occur, while continuing to build a correctional system that is professional, accountable, and resilient,” Thobakgale concluded.

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The Wednesday evening operation focused on the Remand Section of the facility and involved an intensive search of remand detainees and sentenced offenders working in the kitchen area.

Over 800 inmates were searched in a carefully coordinated intervention designed to rid the facility of illegal contraband and restore institutional discipline.

The National Commissioner of Correctional Services, Makgothi Thobakgale, led the sweeping operation which resulted in the seizure of a significant quantity of prohibited items, demonstrating the ongoing challenges posed by illicit activities within correctional centres.

Among the items confiscated were:

• 119 cellphones

• 74 cellphone chargers

• 50 cable chargers

• 41 cellphone batteries

• 34 sim cards

• 81 sharp objects

• 37 dagga pipes

• 305 packets of dagga (totaling 854.80 grams)

• 36 mandrax tablets (approximately 50 grams)

• Tik packets (34.00 grams)

• Cash amounting to R363.60

• Various other contraband items.

“The operation was executed with precision and professionalism by a combined team of 124 Emergency Support Team (EST) members from Correctional Services, supported by 23 officials from the South African Police Service (SAPS) and seven officers from the Metro Police.

“The collaborative nature of this initiative affirms the department’s commitment to working closely with law enforcement partners to combat the smuggling and possession of contraband inside correctional centres,” said the Department of Correctional Services.

The National Commissioner emphasised the strategic importance of sustained search operations, particularly in high-risk areas such as the Remand Section.

“These operations are not only necessary but vital. They reinforce our resolve to run safe, secure, and rehabilitative correctional environments where the environment is conducive for correction, development, and reformation.”

He reiterated that contraband not only undermines institutional security but also compromises the rehabilitation process of inmates.

The department said it will continue to strengthen its internal security measures and deploy targeted interventions in identified hotspots across the country.

“The success of the Pollsmoor operation sends a clear message that contraband has no place in our correctional centres, and the department will continue to act decisively to protect the integrity of the correctional system,” said the department.

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