Cops arrested two men suspected of being involved in an extortion ring in Mfuleni.
Police responded to a tip-off about several men carrying firearms who were busy extorting spaza shops in Kosovo and Samora Machel.
Police spokesperson Malcom Pojie says: “On Monday, October 14, 2024, at approximately 8am officers attached to the Anti-Economical Crime task team operationalised information received of five suspects who were in the process of extorting local vendors in Kosovo and Samora Machel.”
“Officers acted swiftly, tracing the information. However, upon arriving in the area, members of the public relayed to them that the suspects had already moved over into Philippi, probably continuing with their extortion activities.”
Pojie says the unit traced the suspects to Browns Farm, Philippi, where they encountered two men, aged 20 and 22 years old, carrying blue backpacks.
“When the suspects noticed police approaching started acting nervously. Our arresting officers searched the two and found a plastic bag containing an undisclosed amount of coins and a few packets of cigarettes, allegedly taken from some of the shops they extorted,” he says.
“Further interrogation of the two led the police to two different addresses in the Covid informal settlement, in Mfuleni where police discovered an assault rifle which was hidden under a mattress in one of the rooms of the first address.
“The unit proceeded to the second address where they found two other prohibited firearms," Pojie adds.
Both suspects were detained at Mfuleni Saps and are expected to make their first court appearance in the Blue Downs Magistrates’ Court once charged.
“Our dedicated police members continue their quest to eradicate extortion in the Western Cape by arresting those who are believed to perpetrate these crimes and terrorising communities through their heinous criminal activities,” Pojie concludes.