Madlanga Commission | Explosive call captures slain alleged drug lord confronting rival

The Madlanga Commission of Inquiry has heard an explosive phone call between slain alleged drug lord and tow-truck operator, Bevin Loftus, and his alleged rival, panel-beating and tow-truck businessman, Clive Naicker.

The recording was played during testimony by Loftus’s father, Gregory, who believes his son was killed by a Hawks task team allegedly acting on Naicker’s instructions.

In the recording, Bevin is heard accusing Naicker of putting up R2.5 million for his assassination, while Naicker accuses Loftus of killing his uncle.

Before ending the call, Loftus is heard telling Naicker: “The fastest lives the longest,” suggesting that time would tell who would be killed first.

Gregory told the Commission he witnessed the call, which his son made on speakerphone.

He said Bevin was enraged by rumours of an impending attempt on his life and had been staying indoors for months out of fear for his safety.

Naicker previously described Loftus in a newspaper article as a “rude young man” who he was told was behind his uncle’s assassination. He also said he had been told that he himself was the intended target.

Gregory vehemently denied allegations that his son was involved in drug deals or violent crime, maintaining that Bevin earned a legitimate income through his taxi and towing businesses.

A former police officer who left the service in 2009, Gregory said he now runs a panel-beating business where he worked alongside his late son.

He told the Commission that Bevin bought his first tow truck in 2005 and had accumulated 12 trucks by the time of his death, six of which were operational.

Gregory conceded that his son associated with people involved in the drug trade and said five of his tow-truck drivers had been targeted in alleged attacks linked to drug cartels in Durban since 2020.

He alleged that police labelled Bevin a drug dealer to justify killing him, saying officers began harassing his son in 2022.

“Bevin has been living at the premises next door to me since 2020. I can go on to say that, as a father, I am not with him all the time. I don’t know what he does or what he did when he wasn’t with me but, in my presence, while he was living at that premises, I did not see any evidence of any of the allegations” said Gregory.

The Commission challenged Gregory’s denial that Bevin was involved in drug dealing or violent crime.

Media reports, including footage from our sister channel eNCA, about an alleged drug-trafficking turf war in which Bevin was reportedly involved were presented to the Commission.

Evidence leader, Advocate Mpilo Skhakhane, also referred Gregory to a briefing by then Police Minister Bheki Cele at the scene of the shooting, where Cele said the group had been problematic for some time and that rival groups were eliminating each other.

Cele further claimed Bevin had a long list of criminal complaints against him.

Commissioner, Sesi Baloyi, questioned Gregory’s confidence in his son’s innocence, asking how he could be certain given that Bevin was not always with him.

Meanwhile, retired South African Police Service (SAPS) Captain, Ashley Houston, testified that Bevin was associated with a drug-dealing gang known as “Hollywood”.

Houston said Loftus was often seen at the gang’s alleged drug den with its leaders.

He told the Commission that he once arrested Loftus after a complaint was lodged against him for allegedly threatening to shoot a warrant officer.

Houston said no other police officer was willing to arrest Loftus, fearing they could be harmed by him or his alleged associates.

He further testified that one of the alleged leaders of the Hollywood drug cartel, whom Loftus was often seen with, is a convicted fugitive.

Houston said the Hollywood gang was involved in turf wars with other gangs in Wentworth, Durban, with members allegedly being killed on a weekly basis.

He testified that the gang’s alleged drug den is heavily guarded, with members carrying unlicensed firearms and at least six dogs on the property.

He also alleged that numerous murders had taken place at the property.

Written by: Odirile Rabalao