Russia war recruitment scheme: Journalist and four others arrested.
It began quietly, a routine Monday morning at the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court, until the country realised who was sitting in the dock.
Nonkululeko Mantula, a familiar voice from SAfm’s early-morning airwaves, stepped into the courtroom not as a broadcaster, but as an accused. The 39-year-old radio personality was one of five people arrested for allegedly recruiting South Africans to join the Russian military, a charge that stunned the broadcasting world and sent shockwaves through the media sector.
Her co-accused, Thulani Mazibuko (24), Xolani Ntuli (47), Siphamandla Tshabalala (23), and Sfiso Mabena (21), stood beside her, all facing charges under the Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act.
Their arrests didn’t come out of nowhere. It started at OR Tambo International Airport, when three young men were intercepted at a boarding gate. Their behaviour raised suspicions, and airport police quietly pulled them aside. When the Hawks’ Crimes Against the State unit was called in, the story changed from a routine check to a national security case.
Investigators say the men were on their way to Russia via the UAE. A deeper probe allegedly pointed to a South African woman coordinating their travel and that trail led straight to Mantula and her co-accused.
Over the weekend, the Hawks moved fast. One suspect was arrested after landing at OR Tambo on Thursday, who is Mantula. Three more were taken in on Friday. Another was picked up on Saturday. By Monday morning, all five were in court, charged and remanded in custody pending a bail hearing in seven days.
What unsettled many South Africans was the profile of one of the accused. Mantula wasn’t just any radio host, she presented SAfm’s Morning Bliss and had recently shared photos of herself attending events in Russia. She was also listed as co-chair of the BRICS Journalists Association, a group the EU sanctioned earlier this year, accusing it of spreading pro-Russia disinformation.
Her arrest comes against a backdrop of growing allegations that South Africans are being lured or tricked into Russia’s war with Ukraine. Earlier this month, police confirmed they were investigating how at least 17 men ended up on the frontlines after being told they were signing up for bodyguard training.
But on Monday, inside that small Kempton Park courtroom, the focus was firmly on Mantula.
A broadcaster, a public figure. Now at the centre of one of South Africa’s most startling national security investigations.
Her future, and the details behind the alleged recruitment network, will be tested when the bail application unfolds next week.
What do you think, is there really something illegal going on here?