Johannesburg’s member of the mayoral committee (MMC) for public safety, Mgcini Tshwaku, has pushed back against claims that he was kidnapped during a routine compliance inspection at a brothel in Alexandra township.
Tshwaku called the reports false and threatened to escalate the matter.
What really happened during the Alexandra brothel inspection
The incident unfolded during a site inspection of properties in Alexandra on Wednesday, when Tshwaku’s entourage, comprising roughly 20 people, including safety officers, city entities, Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) officers, and journalists, arrived at a building operating as a brothel above a row of street-level shops.
♦️IN PICTURES ♦️
Illegal structures at Alexandra Court were inspected as part of the ongoing enforcement and compliance drive. City officials are assessing these structures to ensure adherence to municipal regulations, mitigate safety risks, and uphold the integrity of public… pic.twitter.com/YSSGotFJtl
– COJ People’s MMC Public Safety (@PublicSafetyMMC) March 4, 2026
The alleged brothel owner initially refused to grant the group access, but Tshwaku reportedly found a pedestrian entrance with a turnstile and gained entry with the help of a woman who used her access card to let the contingent in one by one.
As soon as Tshwaku entered the building, however, the alleged owner reportedly locked the MMC and a small group inside the room, separating them from the rest of the protection officers and JMPD officers waiting outside.
According to News24 situation escalated rapidly when a journalist spotted a firearm tucked into the back of a man’s trousers.
The man reportedly drew the weapon and cocked it after realising the door was locked, and he was outnumbered.
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What inspectors found inside the brothel
Once the group talked the armed man down, Tshwaku and his team reportedly proceeded into the brothel itself, a bar leading into a passage of empty rooms, each fitted with a mattress on the floor.
When word got around that Tshwaku and journalists were being kept from leaving, backup was eventually called. JMPD officers kicked the door open after arriving within several minutes.
The atmosphere remained tense throughout the search.
Fortunately, after the short-lived standoff and Tshwaku’s release with the others, no injuries were reported, though officials were reportedly shocked by the incident.
A woman who had earlier reportedly been stationed behind a bar with a gun repeatedly attempted to approach the young sex workers and appeared to have been trying to intimidate the young women.
Tshwaku spoke to the women about their circumstances and told them to go home and not return.
At least ten young women, most barely over 18, were discovered by JMPD officers during the search for weapons. Several were reportedly in tears, afraid of getting into trouble.
They told officers they were there out of poverty and desperation. News24 reported that the establishment charged R50 for sex.
Tshwaku hits back at kidnapping narrative
Addressing the media following the operation, Tshwaku firmly denied that any kidnapping had taken place. “As you can see, there’s misinformation that I’m being kidnapped. It’s a lie,” he said.
He pointed to the fact that a journalist from News24 had been present throughout the entire operation as proof that the kidnapping narrative was false.
Tshwaku noted that if he had been kidnapped, the reporter who wrote the article would have been kidnapped alongside him, and insisted the journalist should confirm as much.
“We are doing very well in public safety. We’ve got high firepower. No one messes with us because anyone with a gun who wants to shoot at a JMPD, that person will be eliminated,” Tshwaku said, describing the armed individual at the brothel as a guard who had been hostile and resistant to the team’s entry.
Tshwaku warns against ‘media misinformation’
Tshwaku revealed that this was not the first time he had taken issue with reporting from the same publication, saying it was the second time inaccurate information had been published about him.
He warned that continued reporting of this nature could result in the journalist being barred from future operations.
He said the group had photographs and video footage from inside the brothel that would corroborate his account, and that city officials and the regional director had all been present during the operation.
“There was no kidnapping and all of that. So this misinformation that has been peddled, this lie, is actually false. There’s nothing like that,” he said.
Tshwaku framed the raid as part of a broader public safety campaign that he said was yielding measurable results.
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