KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi says there is a ploy to silence investigations into the murders of personalities in the entertainment industry.

Mkhwanazi said senior officials protecting the interests of criminal networks tied to drug cartels are behind the stalling of the investigations.

Speaking to the media on Sunday morning, Mkhwanazi said firearms recovered in Gauteng have been forensically linked to the killings of prominent local artists dating as far back as 2021.

"I'm not saying which type of artists, but the prominent South African artists that were murdered, their cases haven’t been resolved to date.

"At least in our case, we made an arrest that is known in public about the murder of AKA and his friend. But in Gauteng, we haven't had much [luck]. We now know that these firearms are linked to the murders of some of those artists. So, the decision must now be taken that these people must be prosecuted because I now know who the suspects are that are involved," said Mkhwanazi.

We have to stop chasing children in Inanda and start going after those bringing drugs into this country and supplying weapons to killers.

Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi

“We now know who the suspects are, but the prosecution has not signed off on their arrest warrants,” Mkwanazi said.

“The failure to act is rooted in interference from senior officials who are protecting criminal networks tied to drug cartels.”

Mkwanazi also issued a stark warning that the rot in the system runs deeper than just political killings and drug crimes.

“It now includes efforts to silence investigations into the murders of celebrities,” he said.

“There’s a deep cancer in the system. We have to stop chasing children in Inanda and start going after those bringing drugs into this country and supplying weapons to killers.”