BBC see evidence wey show say South African special forces bin murder top detective for di kontri

Senior police detective Frans Mathipa don dey fight for four months make e get access to one ogbonge informate for di case wey e bin dey work on. Finally, dem tell am say di informate go soon reach.

But e bin fear say dis investigation fit cost im life.

Two days later, dem find wia im car turn upside down - jaguda pipo shoot am die as e dey drive.

Now seven members of South Africa special forces, and one military police officer, chop accuse say na dem murder Lt Col Mathipa, di highly respected officer, for August 2023. Dem deny di charges.

Dem neva put date for dia trial yet, and concerns dey say di trial fit no hapun at all, bicos three of di men wey dey charged wit dis murder don refuse to comply wit court order revoking dia bail. Dem still dey work for di army special forces, and one of dem don dey promoted.

Di BBC World Service don get exclusive access to di prosecution case against all di men.

Di case don shock plenty pipo for one of Africa most robust democracies, as pipo dey fear say di kontri military dey significantly overreach dia mandate.

We ask di South Africa army weda dem dey responsible for di killing of Mathipa. Dem neva respond.

Hundreds of pages of secret police and court documents, wey BBC see, show di evidence wey suggest say na special forces kill Mathipa wey bin dey work for one ogbonge police unit wey dem dey call "The Hawks".

We also interview important sources for di police investigation - South Africa former oga of counter-terrorism for di 'The Hawks'; Mathipa commanding officer; and Mathipa family - to build di most comprehensive public account of di events wey lead up to di how di detective take kpai.

E present beta case say di special forces of South Africa dey responsible for im murder.

In particular, police documents show say di vehicle wey bin dey follow Mathipa just bifor dem shoot am, dey registered to one company wey di special forces dey use front. And tracking data for dat vehicle put am for di scene of di shooting.

One of di men for di car, Maj Sunnybooi Wambi, as di court documents show, bin also dey for di scene of one alleged abduction wey special forces sojas bin carry out - di case wey Mathipa bin dey investigate.

Afta Mathipa die, special forces bin give The Hawks serious warning, according to wetin police documents tok. "You fit appoint 10 investigating officers; we go kill all of dem," di warning tok, according to police.

Di case wey Mathipa bin dey investigate dey sensitive.

Na about one Ethiopia man wey im name na Abdella Abadigga, wey be alleged so-called Islamic State [IS] militant. Dem bin grant am temporary asylum for South Africa for 2008, but authorities arrest am abroad for 2017.

Di South Africa military and Department of Home Affairs bin smuggle Abadigga back into di kontri make dem use am as intelligence asset - but e late "go rogue", according to Col Tollie Vreugdenburg, former head of counter-terrorism for 'The Hawks'.

Abadigga later start to dey extort di Ethiopian neighbourhood for Johannesburg, according to wetin di community tell us. E use dis money to dey fund IS, di US government tok.

We ask di South African army if true-true dem bin facilitate di return of Abadigga to South Africa. And we also ask di Department of Home Affairs weda dem bin lie on one plan to deport im to Ethiopia, but instead dem smuggle am into South Africa wit expired passport and refugee permit. Dem no respond.

Specifically, Mathipa bin dey investigate di allegation say di special forces bin later abduct and kill Abadigga for December 2022 - wey di United States, earlier dat year, bin don put under sanctions as IS recruiter and fundraiser, as well as trusted supporter of Bilal al-Sudani, wey be top IS figure for Somalia.

Court documents show say afta Abadigga abduction, im phone connect to one mast near one military base. Police source say dem bin use di number to call one number for Somalia.

Di Pentagon neva respond to BBC question on weda Abadigga phone bin help dem to locate al-Sudani, wey di US special forces bin kpai for Somalia for January 2023, only few weeks afta Abadigga alleged abduction.

We also ask South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa weda Abadigga bin dey kidnapped by di directive of di US. E no gree comment.

Wen dem assign di case to Mathipa, four months bifor im own death, e already know say special forces get hand for di mata, but e bin dey try to get more evidence.

E bin dey build on information wey Abadigga - Ameen - brother bin don already gather. Ameen bin open a missing pesin case soon afta di disappearance, and e bin dey assigned as investigating officer (IO) from local police.

Ameen and di IO also obtain CCTV video wey show di last known movements of Abadigga and im bodyguard Kadir Abotese for di Mall of Africa, one shopping centre for di outskirts of Johannesburg.

Di footage, wey di BBC don see, show one man wey wear blue top as e dey follow Abadigga and her bodyguard as dem dey leave di food court to head back to di car park, and paying for parking three seconds afta Abadigga and Abotese.

Di mall CCTV footage contain anoda vital clue. Di licence plates of di suspected kidnappers vehicles dey clearly visible.

Ameen and IO later discova say all di vehicles dey registered to one company called Peters Communications Trust (PCT), wey be front company for di South African special forces.

For di time wey Abadigga disappear, di directors of PCT include Maj Gen Herbert Mashego, wey be di commanding officer of 5 Special Forces Regiment dat time.

Police documents show say dem bin arrange meeting between di IO and high ranks of di military, including Brig Gen Yalo, di head of di special forces dat time, and for dat meeting, dem tell di IO to tell Ameen say no link dey betwin PCT and di military.

So, as di investigation be like say e don come to standstill, Abadigga broda carry di mata to di Johannesburg High Court.

Responding to di legal action, special forces deny knowledge of Abadigga or im whereabouts. But dem admit say dia sojas bin dey for di Mall of Africa on di date in question, but say dem dey dia for one training exercise.

Dem name di man wey wear blue for di CCTV as Maj Sunnybooi Wambi, and say na im be di commander for di exercise. Dem also admit say all di suspected vehicles for dat mall belong to dem.

Both di govment and di presidency need to authorise evri domestic operations by South Africa military.

We ask di South African former Defence Minister Thandi Modise, and President Ramaphosa, weda dem bin authorise any training exercise for di Mall of Africa - Modise no respond and Ramaphosa refuse to comment.

Wen dem assign di case to Mathipa one month later, e issue subpoena to special forces to force dem to hand ova full details of dis alleged training exercise and all di personnel wey dey involved.

Wen dem finally promise to give Mathipa access to dis documents three months later, e touch am for bodi say dem fit kpai am - according to Brig Paulina Sekgobela, im commanding officer.

"Wen [Mathipa] leave my office e say: 'Brigadier, you know, dis pipo - dem go kill me. I go kpai," she tell BBC.

On di day wey dem kill Mathipa, pesin wey call imsef Tebogo call am for phone and claim say e get information for am about di case - according to Mathipa daughter Basetsana, wey bin dey house wit am dat time.

Mathipa and Tebogo arrange to meet for one petrol station for Pretoria.

AsTebogo fail to show up, Mathipa drive away again, along di highway.

Dem kill am as e dey drive, wit bullet from high-velocity weapons wey di special forces suppose get access to, according to South Africa police.

And videos from motorway toll gantries show say one of di pipo inside di black BMW, wey bin dey follow Mathipa moments bifor in murder, na Maj Sunnybooi Wambi, police tok.

Dis car, like di three vehicles connected wit Abadigga disappearance for di mall, also dey registered to PCT, dem add.

Police assign new detectives to di case afta Mathipa die, and dis cause di special forces to send serious warning through di police Criminal Intelligence division.

Di Police tok say di message warn dem say no mata di number of investigating officers wey dem assign to di case, "we go kill all of dem".

Twelve members of di South African military don dey arrested in total, including Lt Col Sunnybooi Wambi, and di current head of South Africa special forces, Brig Gen Solomon Lechoenyo - both of dem dey promoted to dis positions since police first start to investigate dia roles for di case.

Dem don charge di 12 pipo with di abduction and murder of Abadigga and Abotese, di murder of Mathipa, fraud, and obstruction.

All of dem deny all di charges and court bin initially release dem on bail. But di court later revoke di bail of six of di suspects and order dem to turn demsefs into custody.

Three of di six, including Wambi, dey charged wit both di murder of Mathipa and di abduction and murder or Abotese.

Di military don refuse to hand dem ova.

For July, dia lawyers tok say dem dey receive mental health treatment. Three years afta dem kpai Mathipa, no trial date don dey set.

Meanwhile, dem neva find Abadigga bodi.

"[Mathipa] bin dey bark up di right tree. E bin dey take on di right lion," Vreugdenburg tok about di late detective.

Mathipa daughter Basetsana put am clearly: "We need justice. I no go eva see my dad anymore... Why my dad? Bicos e bin dey do im job."