A 38-year-old man made a brief appearance before the Polokwane magistrate’s court for extortion and fraud this week before his case was postponed to May 12 for a possible bail application.
The suspect allegedly demanded R20 000 from a victim while posing as a Hawks member in exchange for destroying the victim’s case docket in front of him.
The suspect arranged to meet the victim in Makhado in the Vhembe area, Limpopo, and on Tuesday, May 6, he contacted the victim, requesting money for fuel to facilitate the meeting.
The victim reported the matter to the provincial anti-corruption unit. Following this, an application for further investigation was granted, leading to a coordinated operation.
Suspect remanded in jail
The suspect was apprehended on the spot and was found in possession of two cellphones, which were both seized as part of the investigations.
Police spokesperson Malesela Ledwaba said the suspect was remanded in custody after his brief court appearance.
“He is expected to appear in court on May 12 for a possible bail application,” said Ledwaba.
In a separate incident, a KwaZulu-Natal man who was accused of posing as a senior Hawks police officer made a brief appearance in the Durban magistrate’s court on Wednesday, according to a TimesLive story this week.
The 30-year-old Dilano Jarret Naidu is accused of illegally impersonating Colonel Deena Govender through words, actions, and demeanour.
After allegedly demanding R40 000 from a guy in an attempt to get an attempted murder case charge dropped, Naidu is also accused of extortion.
Shootout with police
In another incident, police in the Driekop policing area outside Burgersfort in Sekhukhune arrested five men aged between 31 and 46 years for extortion.
According to police, a blockade of trucks in the area led to a confrontation with the police.
“One suspect was shot and fatally wounded while five others were arrested for extortion. Upon arrival, police found a group of trucks blocking the road for mine trucks to pay before they could load the minerals,” the police said.
“When the suspects saw the police, they started to fire in their direction, and the police responded by firing as well, and one suspect was found dead by emergency medical services, who were summoned to the scene.”
