Exhibit · Loot & valuables
The Killarney sugilite stones
The precious sugilite stones, valued at about R14.9 million, at the centre of Witness K's testimony.
Illustration, not evidenceWhat it is
Rough purple sugilite, a rare South African gemstone. On 23 June 2026 an anonymous Johannesburg Metro Police VIP-unit inspector who testified as 'Witness K' told the Madlanga Commission that stones of this kind, worth about R14.9 million, were taken from a flat in Killarney, Johannesburg on 11 February 2023 in an operation disguised as a lawful police search-and-seizure. She testified the stones were later sold for only around R110,000, with each participant receiving roughly R22,000.
Why it matters
The gemstone is the object at the heart of the alleged Killarney theft that Witness K says was masterminded by suspended Ekurhuleni Metro Police deputy chief Julius Mkhwanazi, her former partner, and carried out by EMPD officers under a falsified SAPS seizure form. It opens a new strand of the inquiry's allegations of organised criminal conduct inside metro policing. All allegations are untested; everyone named is presumed innocent.
“I want to acknowledge my role in what happened and I want to give the commission information about the precious stone case.”Witness K
Sources
Where this comes from
- Mail & Guardian: EMPD deputy chief Julius Mkhwanazi orchestrated a staged raid for precious stones, Witness K says
- TimesLIVE: Julius Mkhwanazi's ex-partner reveals joint crime at EMPD in precious stones theft
- Business Day: Julius Mkhwanazi 'planned' R14m gemstone theft, Madlanga commission hears
Illustration, not a photograph of real evidence. Generated to depict an object described in the commission record.