In a bold nocturnal operation aimed at asserting State authority and reclaiming South Africa’s correctional facilities from criminal networks, National Commissioner of the Department of Correctional Services (DCS), Mr Makgothi Thobakgale, led a multidisciplinary security raid at the Johannesburg Management Area on Wednesday night, 01 April 2026.
Addressing a parade of more than 160 DCS officials bolstered by reinforcements from Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West region, and members of the South African Police Service (SAPS), National Commissioner Thobakgale declared: “We will be doing what we were sworn in by the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa to do.”
“Our mandate flows from the Correctional Services Act. We have a responsibility to ensure that those in our care, whether inside our facilities or outside on parole, do not continue to commit crime. Preventing crime is the most effective way to stop overcrowding and to make South Africans feel safe.”
Inside the Medium A remand section—built for just over 2,300 inmates but currently holding around 6,000, the National Commissioner revealed the brutal arithmetic of overcrowding. The entire Johannesburg Management Area has bed space for 4,800 people, yet houses over 12,000 inmates: an overcrowding level of more than 270%.
“This remand section sees constant movement and admissions,” National Commissioner Thobakgale explained. “This afternoon alone, we admitted more than 800 inmates from court. That movement poses a serious risk to our facilities.”
Speaking during the raid, National Commissioner Thobakgale raised the alarm over drugs smuggled in by inmates arriving directly from court. “If an inmate says he brought drugs from court, I am certain he carried that stash on his body. To confiscate those drugs, we either perform cavity searches or rely on technology. We have motivated for funding to get body scanners.”
He described the relentless pressure on the system: “On average, we admit between 800 and 1,000 every afternoon, and release 1,500 to 2,000 every morning to various courts. You can imagine the strain.”
“Some of our own members are complicit in smuggling contraband. When an inmate admits he brought drugs from court, there is a likelihood that some of our members may have assisted in the smuggling of the drugs into the facility. We will interview the inmate and take disciplinary action against any official who may have aided this.”
By the end of the operation, various prohibited items were confiscated. “We seized 141 cellphones and just over R7,000 in cash,” National Commissioner Thobakgale confirmed. “Eighteen of those cellphones belonged to inmates working in the kitchen. A large amount of cash was also found on inmates working in the kitchen.” Among the evidence displayed was a black pack of fresh, wrapped dagga. “Today’s search operation was meant to clamp down on all this illegal activity,” said National Commissioner Thobakgale.
He confirmed that a management meeting earlier in the day with all Heads of Centres, Area Commissioners, and Regional Commissioners finalised plans to continue cleaning DCS facilities over the Easter weekend. “We will not stop doing raids. We do cell checks every morning. That is the only way to take out cellphones while we finalise an IT solution to detect them and make it impossible to use them even if they get inside.”