‘DIRTY COPS’ VAS - City offices arrested by Hawks for extortion charges

TWO City of Cape Town law enforcement officers were arrested on Tuesday on charges of extortion and bribery and are expected to appear in the Cape Town Regional Court tomorrow.

This after they allegedly demanded payments of R5 000 and R6000 from a foreigner who owned a spaza shop and reportedly also jepped entjies out of the victim’s vehicle to the value of over R600 000. 

The officers, who are attached to the City’s metal theft unit, were arrested by members of the Hawks’ Serious Corruption Investigation team (SCI) together with City of Cape Town and Safety and Security Information Management Services (SSIMS).

Hawks spokesperson Warrant Officer Zinzi Hani said: “The duo were arrested after incidents that took place from 31 January 2025 up until [the date when] they were arrested on a warrant of arrest.

“It is believed that the officers were targeting foreign nationals spaza shops, requesting their asylum documentation.

“With or without the documents, the officers will still demand money. On different occasions the victims paid an amount of R5000 and R6000.

“Further, the investigation revealed that during an arrest of one of the victims the suspects managed to steal cigarettes out of the victims vehicle to the value of over R600 000 while the victim was being processed at Philippi East police station.”

Following the investigation, the team applied for warrants of arrest which were subsequently granted by the court.

According to reports, the suspects aged - 36 and 41 - had previously been arrested in May on similar charges. However, they were released on bail.

The duo are expected to appear in the Cape Town Regional Court on Wednesday facing charges of corruption, extortion and business robbery.

Law enforcement spokesperson Wayne Dyason said that the City can confirm the arrests.

Dyason said: “The Safety and Security Directorate is committed to rooting out corrupt and criminal elements that have infiltrated our enforcement services.

“We will not hesitate to investigate and take the required action when wrongdoing is uncovered.

“This matter is also being dealt with in terms of City policies and processes, and we can confirm they will be suspended as the disciplinary process is underway.”