Gauteng-based businessman and alleged underworld figure Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala is the politically connected thug of the moment. A Pretoria entrepreneur with interests in private security, healthcare procurement and risk management, Matlala now sits at the centre of a widening web of criminal allegations stretching from state hospitals to the upper ranks of the police.
He built companies, including CAT VIP Protection, Lux South Africa Investments, Black AK Trading and Medicare24 Tshwane District, declaring an income of R250,000 per month. Prosecutors allege this empire was sustained through fraud, influence peddling and political protection.
In May, Matlala was arrested and charged with attempted murder, conspiracy to commit murder and money laundering following the 2023 shooting of actress Teboho Thobejane, his former partner. Bail was denied after prosecutors cited his Eswatini ID as a potential flight risk.
The Special Investigating Unit’s probe into Tembisa Hospital revealed that R2 billion had been siphoned through fraudulent tenders, with three Matlala-linked companies receiving contracts worth R13.5 million. These same tenders were flagged by whistleblower Babita Deokoran shortly before her assassination in 2021. While six men have been convicted for her murder, those who ordered it remain free.
In 2024, Matlala’s company, Medicare24, secured a R360 million SAPS health contract that was later cancelled for non-performance. Testimony before the Madlanga Commission revealed WhatsApp messages and financial links allegedly tying Matlala to political fixer Brown Mogotsi and the funding of ANC events. Police Intelligence chief Lieutenant General Dumisani Khumalo testified that Matlala was associated with the so-called Big Five cartels, a network said to combine drugs, tenders and contract killings.
Matlala maintains he is a legitimate businessman caught in political crossfire. Yet his story epitomises the decay of South Africa’s institutions, where public contracts, criminal enterprise and political influence blur into one. The Madlanga Commission’s findings may finally determine whether Matlala is a scapegoat or a central figure in the state’s ongoing capture by cartels.
