Faizel Felix rearrested after 8 years on the run
A 52-year-old member of People Against Gangsterism and Drugs (Pagad) who had evaded authorities for eight years was arrested in Wynberg on Monday.
Faizel Felix appeared briefly in court on Monday, facing charges of illegal firearm possession.
Felix was apprehended by the Hawks Crimes Against the State (Cats) team in the Western Cape on a warrant that had been outstanding since 2016, according to the Department of Justice, Crime Prevention and Security.
Eight-year manhunt ends
The department confirmed that 'Felix, has been on the run for the past 8 years' following his failure to appear in court after being granted bail in 2015.
Felix's legal troubles began when he was initially arrested on 19 August 2015, by the Special Investigating Group for the City of Cape Town on charges of illegal possession of a firearm.
The case was subsequently transferred to the Hawks for further investigation.
ALSO READ: Elderly couple shot dead in parking lot of Rustenburg shopping centre
Court appearance and bail jump
Following his 2015 arrest, Felix appeared before the Wynberg Magistrate's Court where he was granted bail on the firearm possession charge.
However, his compliance with the legal process was short-lived.
'Felix appeared in the Wynberg Magistrate court for the illegal possession of a firearm he was granted bail. He disappeared and never attended court again,' the department stated.
His failure to return to court prompted judicial authorities to issue an arrest warrant, which remained active until his capture on Monday.
ALSO READ: Shootings plague Cape Town after another five people gunned down
Next court appearance
Felix remains in custody following his arrest and court appearance on 14 July 2025.
The Department of Justice confirmed that the case continues, with Felix scheduled to appear at the Wynberg Regional Court on 17 July 2025.
READ NEXT: Tanzanian and Burundian nationals arrested in R54.3m drug bust in South Africa
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Maverick
11-08-2025
- Daily Maverick
Tanzania's ruling party seeks to rid itself of the ‘troublesome' Tundu Lissu
Tanzanian authorities have put opposition leader Tundu Lissu on trial for treason, a charge that carries the death penalty — but it is not the first time that the country's apparatus of repression has tried to kill him. During a visit to a Tanzanian game park last year, an official pointed out an unruly lion to President Samia Suluhu Hassan. 'Does this troublesome animal have a name?' she asked. 'If not, we should call him Tundu Lissu.' It is doubtful that Samia had in mind the phrase uttered by the English King Henry II in 1170 – 'Who will rid me of this troublesome priest?' – which led a group of knights to storm Canterbury Cathedral and murder Archbishop Thomas Beckett during evening vespers. After all, that was one of history's most infamous incitements to political assassination, the plot of TS Eliot's celebrated drama, Murder in the Cathedral. Lissu is the leader of Tanzania's main opposition party, Chama Cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (Chadema). Samia was also probably unaware that Lissu's family, pastoralists from the Singida region of north-central Tanzania, have a long history of keeping lions away from their cattle. Lissu's great-grandfather, Mughwai Murro Munyangu, even killed a lion with a spear and, years later, his father, Lissu Mughwai, shot a lion with a locally made gun. But, fair enough: for many Tanzanians, especially the youth, Tundu Lissu has the heart of a lion. He is a fearless champion for justice, democracy and the underdog. He will be back in court this week in Dar es Salaam, facing charges of treason, a capital crime, accused of obstructing the elections that will be held in October. Political repression Lissu is not alone in facing political repression in what was once one of Africa's better democracies, but which spiralled downward after the election of 'The Bulldozer' John Pombe Magufuli a decade ago. Jeff Smith, executive director of pro-democracy non-profit Vanguard Africa based in Washington, DC, says that while Lissu's case has a high profile, people outside the country have not come to terms with the level of repression in Tanzania. 'Opposition members can't hold private meetings in their homes,' he says. 'And when it does happen, attendees are beaten unconscious, they're hunted down by authorities, they're arrested on frivolous charges. 'It really seems all steps are being taken to muzzle the opposition ahead of the October election. The regime knows they can't win fairly and are doing everything in their power to steal the election before it happens.' A smaller opposition party, ACT-Wazalendo, is still running in the 28 October election and has nominated a CCM defector, Luhaga Mpina, as its presidential candidate. ACT-Wazalendo is particularly strong in Zanzibar. But the alliance of intelligence services and law enforcement operating under the aegis of the ruling Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) has focused special attention on Lissu, who has suffered years of criminal prosecution, beatings and incarceration. They have gone to such lengths to get him out of the way, not only because he is a popular figure, but because he cannot be bought. This is seen as a fundamental threat to the CCM, which has been in power since independence in December 1961, the longest unbroken run in Africa. Like others that have been in power too long, the CCM stands accused of having become a patronage machine captured by wealthy businesspeople and foreign money. In September 2017, Lissu, then the opposition's justice spokesperson, was shot at his residence inside the parliamentary compound in Dodoma. He had 16 AK-47 bullets pumped into him by masked assailants who left him for dead. The attack was never properly investigated and the culprits were never found. Lissu spent several years on his back and in operating theatres, many of them in Leuven, Belgium. Still limping and on crutches, he flew back to Dar in 2020 to challenge Magufuli for the presidency – an act of such immense courage that it earned him the respect not just of millions of Tanzanians, but of people throughout the world. Far-from-free elections But courage and electoral support were never enough. The 2020 election was marred by vote-rigging and violence against opposition members, dozens of whom were killed, according to human rights organisations. Lissu, tipped off that an assassination squad was coming for him, was rescued through the intervention of the German ambassador, and he returned to exile in Belgium. Magufuli died on 17 March 2021, during the Covid-19 pandemic, having taken advice from Nigerian evangelist TB Joshua that he could beat Covid with steam baths and prayer. Joshua soon followed him to the grave. Samia, a woman from Zanzibar who had been grafted on to the ticket as vice president to balance Magufuli, became president. On a trip to Belgium in 2022, she sought out Lissu and wooed him with the promise of reform and a fresh start. He came home, buoyed by the lifting of political restrictions, but soon realised that the long-overdue revamp of the constitution and the electoral system – reforms needed to create a level playing field and prevent a repeat of 2020 – was not on the CCM's agenda. Samia will run for president in her own right for the first time in October. But she is a weak candidate who was a virtual unknown before her accidental presidency. No one is in any doubt that, under a fair electoral system, she would struggle to beat Lissu. 'No reforms, no election' Lissu campaigned under the slogan 'No reforms, no election', covering the length and breadth of the country before he was arrested on 9 April after a rally in Mbinga, in the Ruvuma region in Tanzania's deep south, and taken to Dar es Salaam. For the past four months, he has been confined to a solitary cell, six feet by six feet, at the Ukonga maximum security prison in Dar. He is being kept in a special section where he is surrounded by more than 100 death row prisoners, some of whom have been facing execution for years. The prosecutors in his case will appear before a magistrate in Dar on Wednesday, 13 August, at a committal hearing to read the information, documentary exhibits and statements of the intended prosecution witnesses to Lissu. Thereafter, Lissu will be invited, for the first time, to speak to his case before the file is sent to the high court and he goes on trial for his life. The high court has ruled that the identities of witnesses testifying against Lissu will be kept confidential, effectively shielding them from both Lissu and the public. Vigilance and noise The charges against Lissu follow the long-standing pattern of autocrats who use legal gamesmanship, or lawfare, to silence or lock up opponents. But there is an added dimension of seriousness and deliberation in the way they have gone about the Lissu prosecution. Last week, democracy activist and influencer Maria Sarungi Tsehai posted that she had been warned of a plan to poison Lissu in prison, where his food is in the hands of his jailers. Such things are not unheard of. Last year, the Russian dissident Alexei Navalny, a man in the same mould as Tundu Lissu, died in prison in the Arctic Circle after multiple attempts on his life. A photo of Russian opposition figure Aleksei Navalny lies among candles and flowers at a makeshift memorial to him in front of the Russian Embassy on 24 February 2024 in Berlin, Germany. Navalny died in a Siberian prison around 16 February. (Photo: Sean Gallup / Getty Images) The Tanzanian authorities may be emboldened by the change in the political climate in Washington, DC, where the Trump administration has dumped the US's previous concern for human rights and governance in favour of pursuing critical minerals and competing with China, which has had a close association with the CCM for 60 years. Still, some international news media and parts of the international community that still care are watching. The European Union has taken a particularly strong position, condemning Lissu's arrest and dismissing the treason charges as politically motivated. A group of political leaders and activists from across Africa, under former Botswana President Ian Khama, are standing in solidarity with Lissu. They all need to maintain a level of vigilance and noise, even with so many other more high-profile conflicts happening across the world. It is not just Tundu Lissu who is at risk, but human rights and democracy through an entire region that is threatening to lapse into authoritarianism and thuggery. DM
IOL News
29-07-2025
- IOL News
Goodwood drug bust nets R54. 3 million worth of Tik and heroin
Drugs seized from a residence in Goodwood. Image: Supplied Two foreign nationals are expected to appear in the Goodwood Magistrate's Court on Tuesday after police seized a total of R54.3 million worth of drugs. The Western Cape police spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Malcolm Pojie, said the bust comes after an intelligence-driven operation in the area. 'At approximately 1.45pm, members attached to Operation Restore operationalised information which led them to a residence situated at Molteno Street in Goodwood where they initiated a search of the premises. During the search, the members discovered and seized 6kg of heroin, which was found in a cupboard in one of the rooms,' Pojie said. The heroin and tik seized during the raid at a home in Goodwood. Image: SAPS A 32-year-old Tanzanian national who was an occupant of the room was arrested and charged for dealing in heroin with an estimated street value go about R1 million. As police officers extended the search to another bedroom, they found more heroin. 'Officers found 100 grams of heroin with an estimated value of R16,000. This led to the arrest of a 28-year-old Burundi national for the possession of drugs,' Pojie said. He said the officers continued to search the home and came across more contraband. 'The members expanded the search, leading to the discovery of 145kg of tik and 16kg of heroin found in the roof of the residence. The estimated street value is R53.3 million, bringing the total value of the discovery to R54.3million,' Pojie said. He said the investigation in this matter is being conducted by the narcotics section located within the Provincial Organised Crime Unit detectives. Western Cape Police Commissioner Lieutenant General (Adv) Thembisile Patekile welcomed the arrests and praised the members for their efforts to rid the streets of the scourge of drug abuse and trafficking. Get your news on the go, click here to join the Cape Argus News WhatsApp channel. Cape Argus
The South African
22-07-2025
- The South African
Kenya dropped terror charges against activist Boniface Mwangi
Kenya dropped terrorism charges against activist Boniface Mwangi following widespread criticism on 21 July 2025. The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) had arrested Mwangi at his Lukenya home on 19 July 2025. Authorities initially accused him of facilitating terrorist acts during the 25 June 2025 protests. Rights groups condemned the charges as politically motivated and legally unfounded. Furthermore, Mwangi denied all allegations, declaring publicly, 'I am not a terrorist'. Mwangi now faces two charges: possession of blank ammunition and noxious substances without authority. The charge sheet cites one round of 7.62 mm blank ammunition and three teargas canisters found at Mageuzi Hub, Nairobi. Police allegedly recovered these items during a search on 19 July 2025. Mwangi pleaded not guilty and was released on a bond of KSh 1 million (approximately R140 000 – R150 000). His lawyer, Njanja Maina, disputed the legitimacy of the evidence presented. A coalition of 37 rights organisations, including the Police Reforms Working Group (PRWG), criticised the government's use of anti-terrorism laws against protesters. They stated Mwangi's arrest reflects a broader crackdown on youth-led dissent. Former Chief Justice David Maraga accused the government of weaponising the judiciary to silence critics. In addition, Siaya Governor James Orengo called the charges 'ridiculous' and legally baseless. The Anti-Terrorism Police Unit's involvement in protest-related arrests has sparked legal and public concern. CONTEXT: PROTESTS AND POLICE VIOLENCE Mwangi's arrest followed deadly protests against President William Ruto on 25 June 2025. Demonstrators demanded accountability for police brutality and economic hardship. Over 100 deaths have been reported since protests began in 2024, according to rights groups. Mwangi has previously faced arrest in Kenya and Tanzania for activism. As a result, his case at the East African Court of Justice alleges torture by Tanzanian police in May 2025. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 11. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
