Former Ekurhuleni city manager Imogen Mashazi will also remain in custody.
Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) Deputy Chief Julius Mkhwanazi at Boksburg Magistrate’s Court on 23 April 2026. Picture: Nigel Sibanda/ The Citizen
Two of the four accused in the blue lights corruption case, including suspended Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) deputy chief Julius Mkhwanazi, have been granted bail, though they will spend another night in custody due to administrative delays.
Mkhwanazi appeared alongside former Ekurhuleni city manager Imogen Mashazi, head of legal and risk services Khemraj “Kemi” Behari and head of human resources Linda Gxasheka in the Germiston Magistrate’s Court on Thursday, 9 July 2026.
All four face charges of fraud, corruption and defeating the ends of justice following their arrests on Wednesday, 8 July, by the police’s Madlanga commission recommendations task team.
Case linked to Julius Mkhwanazi’s blue lights scandal
The charges stem from allegations that Mkhwanazi was protected from disciplinary action relating to his involvement in the unlawful installation of blue lights on four vehicles owned by alleged cartel figure Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala.
Prosecutors further alleged that the accused benefited financially from the arrangement.
According to the state, Mashazi’s actions resulted in Behari and Gxasheka receiving salary increments of R1.3 million each, while Mkhwanazi – already out on R30 000 bail in a separate matter – allegedly received just over R600 000.
When proceedings resumed after 2pm following a lengthy adjournment, the state requested a postponement to verify the residential addresses of Mashazi and Gxasheka.
The prosecutor indicated that Mashazi is linked to five properties, including locations in Bedfordview, Meyersdal, Brakpan, Waterfall Estate and Sunward Park.
“According to the police, there’s a house in Mpumalanga that they have not yet got the exact address as it is,” the state advocate said.
Gxasheka, meanwhile, is associated with two Gauteng properties and another in the Eastern Cape.
“It’s only one house that has been verified so far because they were arrested last night.”
The state confirmed it would not oppose bail for Behari and Mkhwanazi.
Defence pushes back
Mashazi’s legal representative, Johan Eksteen, challenged the state’s claims, arguing that investigators had failed to properly verify the properties in question.
“She has never in her life stayed in Bedfordview,” the lawyer said.
Eksteen explained that Mashazi had merely rented the Meyersdal property and had temporarily lived in Waterfall through a lease between September 2025 and March 2026.
He also highlighted that the Sunward Park home had been sold in 2000 and confirmed that her current residence is in Brakpan.
“Last night, the police were at this address,” Eksteen said, describing the Mpumalanga property as a “fishing expedition”.
He further told the court that Mashazi had previously faced threats to her life in 2023 and had stayed at a temporary address for safety reasons.
Opposing the postponement, Eksteen highlighted his client’s health concerns, including hypertension, high cholesterol, heart disease, diabetes and chronic back pain.
Gxasheka’s lawyer confirmed her connection to three properties, but clarified that her primary residence is in Bedfordview, where she was arrested.
The other addresses relate to a rental property owned by her husband and his family home in the Eastern Cape.
Accused cite health in bail applications
In his affidavit, Behari indicated his intention to plead not guilty.
He assured the court he would cooperate fully and requested R5 000 bail.
The Ekurhuleni official claimed his detention would hinder his capacity to deal with matters arising from ongoing investigations conducted by the Madlanga commission, Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa), as well as internal processes within the Ekurhuleni Municipality.
“My continued incarceration will only prejudice me and create no benefit to the state,” Behari’s affidavit reads.
He cited serious medical conditions, including hypertension and diabetes, while also disclosing a recent heart surgical procedure.
“On the 25th of February 2026, I underwent operations where two stents were implanted to keep the arteries to my heart opened. I require medical treatment.”
Mkhwanazi similarly denied wrongdoing, calling the charges against him “spurious and politically motivated”.
He argued that he is not a flight risk.
“My name and face are known to many, if not most people in our country and the world, given the widespread media attention that this matter and the Madlanga commission of inquiry have attracted,” the EMPD deputy chief stated in his sworn statement.
He told the court he suffers from diabetes, while asking for bail in the amount of R10 000.
Additionally, Mkhwanazi asserted that the fraud and corruption charges brought against him, together with current Ekurhuleni city manager Kagiso Lerutla at the Boksburg Magistrate’s Court, are “doomed to fail”.
Court sets bail conditions
The court granted bail of R50 000 each to Behari and Mkhwanazi, despite the state proposing R100 000.
As part of their conditions, both men must report weekly to the Brooklyn police station in Pretoria.
However, they will stay behind bars overnight because the office responsible for processing bail payments had already closed.
Their release is expected once it reopens on Friday, 10 July.
Mashazi and Gxasheka also remain in custody, with their bail applications scheduled to be heard on Friday.
Background
Testimony before the Madlanga commission revealed that Mkhwanazi had been suspended in February 2023 over the blue lights controversy, but returned to work three months later on 24 May following intervention by Mashazi.
A subsequent report by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid), released in September 2023, recommended disciplinary action against him for alleged fraud and corruption.
Despite this, Mkhwanazi was promoted to EMPD deputy chief in December 2023.
Around the same time, Behari and Gxasheka allegedly received salary increases of R600 000 each described as “loyalty bonuses“.
It is alleged that Gxasheka did not take the necessary steps to institute disciplinary measures against Mkhwanazi, while Behari’s legal advice to Mashazi regarding the Ipid report resulted in the Ekurhuleni municipality rejecting its findings.
