Former Ekurhuleni Officials Remain Behind Bars After Germiston Court Appearance

• Four former Ekurhuleni municipal officials appeared in the Germiston Magistrates Court and were remanded in police cells overnight
• Julius Mkhwanazi and Kemi Behari were each granted bail of R50,000, but could not pay before the bail office closed
• Imogen Mashazi and Linda Gxasheka are set to apply for bail on Friday in connection with the blue lights scandal

GAUTENG - The four former Ekurhuleni municipal officials, who were arrested yesterday, have been remanded in custody after appearing before the Germiston Magistrates Court.

The accused are former municipal manager Imogen Mashazi, head of legal services Kemi Behari, head of human resources Linda Gxasheka, and former deputy police chief Julius Mkhwanazi. All four will spend at least one more night in police cells following their appearance.

Bail granted for two, pending for others

The court granted bail of R50,000 each to Mkhwanazi and Behari. However, neither was able to pay before the bail office closed on the day of the hearing, meaning they remain in custody until payment can be processed. Mashazi and Gxasheka did not apply for bail at this stage and are expected to do so on Friday.

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The arrests followed the issuing of warrants related to each individual's alleged role in the blue lights affair, a case involving the unlawful installation of blue lights on a vehicle belonging to alleged cartel figure Vusimuzi "Cat" Matlala.

View video of the four in court here:

Allegations at the heart of the case

Mkhwanazi stands accused of facilitating the fitting of the blue lights on Matlala's vehicle and of issuing Matlala an official appointment card, an allegation he has consistently denied. He addressed the matter before the Madlanga Commission, where he rejected the claims but acknowledged that he shared a "brotherly" relationship with Matlala.

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) had previously recommended that Mkhwanazi face disciplinary proceedings. Instead, according to reports, Mashazi promoted him rather than acting on IPID's recommendation.

Mashazi, Behari and Gxasheka are alleged to have shielded Mkhwanazi from accountability by protecting him against disciplinary action following those findings.

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Behari denies allegations

Briefly News also reported that Advocate Khemraj Behari denied allegations that he received a salary bonus for protecting Commissioner Julius Mkhwanazi. Behari, the head of legal for the City of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality (EMM), was placed on precautionary suspension with full pay in December 2025, over the scandal surrounding Commissioner Mkhwanazi.He denied that the R600,000 salary increase he received was for failing to implement disciplinary action against Mkhwanazi.

Source: Briefly News