Klerksdorp Correctional Centre Search: Contraband seized in unannounced raid at Klerksdorp Correctional Centre
Klerksdorp Correctional Centre was searched by National Commissioner of Correctional Services - Makgothi Thobakgale. 20 cellphones, 37 SIM cards and drugs were seized.
KLERKSDORP – National Commissioner of Correctional Services Makgothi Thobakgale led an unannounced search at the Klerksdorp Correctional Centre on Tuesday night, 20 October 2026, as part of the department’s festive season security operations. North West Insider attended the search as invited media.
Inmates were uprooted from their cell blocks, beds were overturned and mattresses taken apart. Spare clothes and jars of cream were checked, posters were removed from walls and lockers were emptied. In some cases pillows were opened and emptied.
The department confirmed the following items were confiscated: 20 cellphones, 40 packets of nyaope, 6 Mandrax tablets, 15 USB devices, 3 sharp objects, 1 solar panel, 1 ball of dagga, 3 homemade speakers, 1 radio, 37 SIM cards, 3 cellphone batteries and a pair of scissors.
The department said the search forms part of its ongoing efforts to disrupt the smuggling, possession and distribution of prohibited items. Such items undermine security, compromise the safety of officials and offenders, and obstruct effective rehabilitation.
Speaking during the search, Thobakgale said teams were finding cellphones with chargers, as well as dagga.
“There is still, according to the indications, more that we’re going to find, because some of these offenders are actually declaring what they have,” he said.
The operation was carried out by the department’s EST security unit, which aims to root out contraband, break up criminal networks behind bars and protect inmates and officials.
According to DCS spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo, this facility stood out because inmates immediately confessed when something was found. Inmates were repeatedly asked who a confiscated cellphone belonged to. If it was not theirs but another inmate’s, both will face the necessary charges.
Officers also opened containers during the search. One bottle that looked like a personal care product was found filled with brake fluid, and nobody could account for where it came from.
All prohibited items were recorded and photographed. Offenders face an internal process: privileges such as working in the kitchen can be taken away, and a sentence can be extended. More raids like this are planned for other facilities across the Platinum Province.
Thobakgale said there are 43 gangs in Klerksdorp alone, and named murder, rape and robbery as the most serious crimes in the area. The searches are part of efforts to combat this and to limit gang-related crime.
North West Insider’s view: these searches are a good thing. They help keep people safe over the festive season, and we were told they will continue so that rules and regulations are followed.
It was also sobering to see the men inside.
Each one of them is somebody’s child, brother, son or father, and each had potential.
Some cells are crowded, with about 20 men in one.
Courses and projects are offered at the facility to help inmates better themselves, but not everyone takes them up.
We hope they will, so that when they are released, they can be placed in jobs and be a positive influence in the community.
The department stressed that the fight against contraband requires a collective effort, because corrections is a societal responsibility. It said it will continue to intensify security operations and strengthen measures to keep prohibited items out of correctional facilities, so that these environments stay secure, officials and offenders are protected, and the integrity of the correctional system is upheld.
The department warned that any official found involved in smuggling or supplying contraband will face disciplinary action and possible prosecution, and urged the public not to supply offenders with prohibited items.
