Joe “Ferrari” Sibanyoni has delivered explosive testimony about murdered musician DJ Sumbody, telling the Madlanga Commission that he understands ballistic evidence linked weapons used in an August 2022 attempt on his life to the November 2022 killing of the popular entertainer.

PRETORIA — Joe “Ferrari” Sibanyoni has opened a dramatic new chapter in the DJ Sumbody murder story, revealing what he says connects the musician’s killing to an earlier attempt on his own life.

Testifying before the Madlanga Commission, Sibanyoni spoke about his relationship with the late DJ Sumbody, whose real name was Oupa Sefoka, and another entertainer known as DJ Vettis.

But what began as questions about relationships quickly turned into one of the most explosive moments of Sibanyoni’s testimony.

Sibanyoni told the Commission that, as he now understands it, weapons used when gunmen attempted to kill him in August 2022 were subsequently linked through ballistic evidence to DJ Sumbody’s murder in November of the same year.

Sibanyoni had survived the August attack after being shot twice.

DJ Sumbody did not survive the attack against him three months later.

“THE SAME CRIMINAL NETWORK”

Sibanyoni used the alleged ballistic connection to challenge suggestions that his relationships placed him inside a criminal network.

Instead, he portrayed himself as one of its targets.

“As I understand, we were linked not by any criminal association, but by the weapons of the same criminal network,” Sibanyoni told the Commission.

It was a striking declaration.

Sibanyoni was effectively asking the Commission to view him and DJ Sumbody not as alleged associates within a criminal structure, but as people he says were targeted by the same alleged network.

The Commission has not made a finding confirming Sibanyoni’s broader characterisation of a criminal network, and his evidence remains subject to scrutiny.

SIBANYONI REVEALS HIS CONNECTION TO DJ SUMBODY

Sibanyoni also provided a deeply personal account of how he came to know DJ Sumbody.

He told the Commission that he knew Sumbody’s father, Mr Sefoka, through the taxi industry.

According to Sibanyoni, the elder Sefoka had been a member and operator within their taxi association.

After his death, Sibanyoni said Oupa Sefoka was introduced to the industry, although his mother ultimately carried on much of the work associated with the family’s taxi interests.

Sibanyoni said his own relationship with DJ Sumbody later developed through entertainment and social circles.

He described the musician warmly.

He said he liked Sumbody as a young man who was good at his craft and music.

Sibanyoni told the Commission that they moved in broadly similar social circles and encountered each other at events and functions.

However, he denied having any material business dealings with the musician.

WERE DJ SUMBODY AND DJ VETTIS TARGETED BECAUSE OF JOE “FERRARI”?

Then came the question that dramatically changed the testimony.

Sibanyoni had been explaining that both DJ Vettis, who survived an attempt on his life, and DJ Sumbody were people close to him.

The Commission sought clarity.

Was Sibanyoni suggesting that the two entertainers had been attacked because of their proximity to him?

“Correct,” Sibanyoni responded.

The question was put even more directly.

Was it his belief that DJ Vettis and DJ Sumbody were targeted because of their relationship with him?

“Yes,” Sibanyoni answered.

It is a sensational claim, but an important distinction remains: Sibanyoni was expressing his belief about why the two men were targeted. The exchange does not establish that belief as a proven motive for either attack.

DJ SUMBODY MURDER ENTERS SIBANYONI’S STORY

Sibanyoni told the Commission that he had known DJ Vettis through social events and described him as being close to him.

He then placed DJ Sumbody in what he described as the same social space.

According to Sibanyoni, the attempt on DJ Vettis’ life and the killing of DJ Sumbody involved people who were close to him.

He told the Commission that he placed their cases on record because he wanted commissioners to understand what he believes was happening around him.

The testimony potentially adds another dimension to the complex web of relationships and violence being examined before the Madlanga Commission.

SIBANYONI SAYS HE WAS SHOT TWICE

Earlier in his testimony, Sibanyoni described himself not as someone deploying killers but as someone who had twice been targeted.

He told the Commission that he had survived an earlier assassination attempt and was again attacked in August 2022.

That second attack now becomes especially significant because of what Sibanyoni says he understands about the subsequent ballistic evidence.

According to his evidence, the weapons from the August 2022 attack were later linked to 18 other serious crimes, including DJ Sumbody’s murder.

Following the assassination attempt, Sibanyoni said he took steps to strengthen his personal security.

He told the Commission that he employed a private security company to protect himself and his household.

THREE MONTHS BETWEEN THE ATTACKS

The timeline is chilling.

Sibanyoni survived an assassination attempt in August 2022.

DJ Sumbody was murdered in November 2022.

And Sibanyoni now says he understands ballistic evidence connected weapons used in the two attacks.

The significance of that evidence will ultimately depend on the underlying ballistic findings and the criminal proceedings dealing with the attacks.

But for Sibanyoni, the connection supports the central argument he repeatedly advanced before the Commission.

He says he was a target.

“I HAD BARELY ESCAPED WITH MY LIFE”

Sibanyoni repeatedly sought to frame his interactions with police through that experience of violence.

Speaking about his engagement with Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, Sibanyoni said he approached the issue of alleged hitmen from the perspective of a victim who had survived attempts on his life.

He told the Commission that he had watched colleagues being killed and had been demanding accountability from law enforcement.

Sibanyoni said Mkhwanazi listened to his concerns, asked questions and took extensive notes.

He contrasted that response with what he described as years of frustration in trying to get authorities to act on taxi violence.

A NEW QUESTION HANGS OVER THE DJ SUMBODY CASE

Sibanyoni’s testimony now leaves a dramatic question hanging over proceedings.

Why, in his view, would people close to him have been targeted?

The Commission did not establish the answer during this portion of his testimony.

Nor did the evidence presented in this section establish that DJ Sumbody was murdered because of his relationship with Sibanyoni.

What Sibanyoni did place squarely before the Commission was his belief that the attacks were connected to proximity to him, together with his account of a ballistic link between weapons used against him and those connected to DJ Sumbody’s murder.

Those claims are likely to attract intense scrutiny as the Commission continues examining the network of relationships, violence and alleged criminal activity that has surfaced during its hearings.

For now, Sibanyoni’s message to the Commission is unmistakable.

He says he and DJ Sumbody were not linked by criminal association.

He says they were linked as targets.

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