Jaco Hanekom
Jaco Hanekom was a civilian police informant based in or near Meyerton, Gauteng. In August 2022, he provided CCTV footage to retired Deputy Police Chief Revo Spies exposing an illegal operation by Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) officers at a workshop approximately 75km outside their jurisdiction. He was murdered on 17 March 2023 — the same day that the EMPD officers implicated in the footage were granted bail — via a drive-by shooting.
The EMPD copper operation (August 2022): Hanekom’s CCTV footage showed EMPD officers conducting what Spies described as an “irregular and unlawful operation” at a Meyerton workshop, confiscating copper cables. Meyerton falls outside the EMPD’s jurisdictional boundary; metro police require SAPS presence for such operations. No copper or other materials were recovered through proper channels, no arrests were made, and the officers were not disciplined. Critically, acting EMPD Chief Julius Mkhwanazi (not to be confused with KZN Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi) was captured on the CCTV footage at the workshop.
Murder (17 March 2023): Spies forwarded the footage to Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) in March 2023. That same day — the day EMPD officers from the Meyerton operation were granted bail — Hanekom was shot dead in a drive-by shooting. The timing established the murder-for-information pattern that Spies subsequently testified about at the Madlanga Commission.
Madlanga Commission testimony: Retired Deputy Police Chief Revo Spies testified before the Madlanga Commission in November 2025, linking Hanekom’s murder to the EMPD’s broader criminal operations. Spies described a “rogue unit” within EMPD engaged in extortion, kidnapping, theft, and hijacking under Julius Mkhwanazi’s command. The CCTV footage Hanekom provided was entered as evidence. Julius Mkhwanazi was suspended on 11 November 2025 following commission testimony.
Connections
- Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) — the institution whose officers Hanekom exposed via CCTV footage
- Julius Mkhwanazi (EMPD) — acting EMPD chief captured on CCTV; suspended November 2025 following commission testimony
- Madlanga Commission — murder presented as evidence of rogue unit’s willingness to kill informants
- Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) — footage forwarded to IPID by Spies on the day of Hanekom’s murder