Fort Hare murder accused axed over false degrees
Alleged mastermind behind killings was found during audit to have falsified degree certificates
The University of Fort Hare has terminated the contract of its head of investigations and vetting services, Isaac Plaatjies, who is alleged to be behind the killings of at least one university official and the bodyguard of vice-chancellor Sakhela Buhlungu.
Plaatjies’ job was scuttled after a finding that he had misrepresented his qualifications to gain employment at the university in 2019, a claim he had denied.
Among nine men behind bars awaiting trial in connection with the murders, Plaatjies is alleged to have submitted false qualifications, claiming he had completed a BA degree in 1992, a BA honours in 1996 from the University of the Western Cape and a Masters from the University of Natal in 1999.
“The university confirms and stands by the incontrovertible evidence it has on record of the fraudulent misrepresentations by Mr Plaatjies to bedizen [dress up] his credentials that resulted in the termination of his employment contract,” University of Fort Hare spokesperson JP Roodt said.
“Mr Plaatjies submitted to our HR department forged and fabricated certificates of qualifications that were never conferred on him by universities when he joined. Since 2023, the university has undertaken staff qualification audits which will conclude in the first quarter of this year.”
Plaatjies was denied bail in December by magistrate Zwelethu Ngethu at the Dimbaza Magistrate’s Court, who described him as a dishonest and dangerous person who would put other people’s lives in danger.
He is accused of compiling a hit list for the assassination of University of Fort Hare officials, who included Buhlungu, his bodyguard Mboneli Vesele, deputy vice-chancellor Prof Renuka Vithal and fleet manager
Petrus Roets. Roets and Vesele were shot dead in 2022 and 2023 respectively.
Documents seen by the Sunday Times reveal that on January 17 the director of human resources at the university, Dr Paul Tladi, wrote a letter that was hand-delivered to Plaatjies, requesting him to “confirm and submit qualifications”.
“It has come to the attention of the university that you have misrepresented your qualifications in your curriculum vitae [CV]. To disprove these allegations, please submit your original certificates, academic transcripts, letters of invitation to graduate, graduation photos, and any substantive proof for each of the following qualifications: Bachelor of Arts (UWC) 1991, Bachelor of Arts (Honours) (UWC) 1996 [and] Master of Arts (University of Natal) 1999. You are further reminded, as you may well be aware, that failure to disprove these allegations will affect your continued employment with the university,” Tladi said in the letter.
He warned Plaatjies that should such information not be provided by January 19, the university would take action, including a legal claim for damages to recover monies paid to him, and pursue a criminal case.
Plaatjies wrote with a pen on the letter he received from Tladi denying the allegations. “I have never presented these qualifications. The only qualification I submitted is the National Diploma said Plaatjies.
However, documents that appear to have been submitted by Plaatjies during his recruitment as manager for transformation at the university in 2019 show that he had included the disputed qualifications on his CV.
In a form Plaatjies signed on March 19 2019, where he was asked to state his highest qualifications, he said he had obtained a Masters of Arts from the University of Natal on April 21 1999.
Plaatjies was appointed as University of Fort Hare manager of transformation in June 2019 and then as the head of investigations and vetting attached to Buhlungu’s office from February 2022 until January 2025.
According to his CV, Plaatjies, who started his career in 1988 at the department of correctional services, was recruited from the State Security Agency in 2019, where he was a senior investigations officer.
When Plaatjies appeared at the Dimbaza Magistrate’s Court for his bail application in December, the national task team’s lead investigator, Sgt Metla Mokoena, told the court cellphone analysis showed Plaatjies had been in continuous contact with one of the hitmen, Thamsanqa Mgwetyana. The state alleged that Plaatjies had visited the hitman and compiled the hit list, attaching photos of targeted individuals, while Mgwetyane named his price tag for each target.
However, in his plea statement, presented in court by his counsel, Danie Dörfling SC, Plaatjies said there was no direct evidence linking him to the murder of Vesele.
Plaatjies said the state intends to use information against him which he had gathered while working with the South African Police Service national task team in its investigations into the assassinations at the university. He said he had worked closely with Buhlungu to expose corrupt activities at the University of Fort Hare.