Confiscated items include 141 cellphones, various illicit drugs, over R7,000 in cash, and other prohibited items.

The clean-up operation targeted one of the country’s big five correctional facilities, which houses more than 12,400 sentenced offenders and remand detainees.

This intervention forms part of the Department of Correctional Services’ intensified and ongoing efforts to rid correctional facilities of contraband.

National Commissioner Thobakgale reaffirmed the Department’s commitment to sustaining these operations, emphasising that maintaining safe, secure, and well-managed correctional centres is essential to creating an environment conducive to effective rehabilitation.

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Appearing before the Ad Hoc Committee in Parliament, Mkhwanazi outlined serious security concerns and alleged irregularities inside the high security C-Max facility.

He told the committee that Matlala, who is facing attempted murder charges, was enjoying unusual freedom inside the prison.

According to Mkhwanazi, Matlala had close relationships with senior officials at the facility, including the head of the prison.

This alleged relationship enabled him to move around freely and operate with ease within one of South Africa’s most secure correctional environments.

“I’m not going to explain part of the reasons why there was a motivation for him to move away from there, but that’s part of the problems that have been experienced,” Mkhwanazi told the committee.

The situation escalated after Correctional Services Commissioner Makgothi Thobakgale intervened following concerns raised publicly.

The commissioner deployed officials to conduct a search inside the C-Max facility.

During the operation, authorities discovered a prohibited cellphone inside Matlala’s cell block, which he was sharing with two other inmates.

The device has since become a key piece of evidence in ongoing investigations.

Mkhwanazi confirmed that the cellphone is already assisting investigators in building the case.

“The phone has helped us with a lot of these things where the case is,” he said.

However, serious questions remain about how such a device made its way into one of the country’s most secure prison sections.

Mkhwanazi pointed directly to the alleged relationships between Matlala and prison leadership as a possible enabling factor.

“Mr Cat Matlala was found with a cellphone inside prison,” he emphasised.

The revelations have raised alarm over security breaches, internal collusion, and the integrity of correctional facilities meant to house high risk inmates.

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