An intelligence officer attached to the National Intelligence Unit and a police imposter, who were arrested for extortion two months ago, were denied bail when they appeared at the Pretoria North Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday.
Warrant Officer Kleinkie Raquel, 42, and a police imposter, Xavier Luchen Bosman, 34, face two counts of counts of extortion. They were remanded in custody and will appear again in July for bail application.
National Prosecuting Authority Tshwane Spokesperson Phumla Mahanjana alleged that on 11 April 2022 the accused met with the complainant and introduced themselves as police.
She alleged that during their meeting they blackmailed the complainant into giving them R10 000 in order for them not to reopen a case that was previously withdrawn by the state.
The complainant alerted the Anti Corruption Unit in May and they set up an entrapment against them.
“The two were arrested on different dates after an entrapment was conducted by the SAPS Anti- Corruption Unit. In court they pleaded not guilty to the charges against them. However, the prosecutor Nkhangweleni Phanuel Mudavhi successfully opposed bail,” she said.
She further said magistrate Ashwin Ramnarain , who presided over the bail hearing, agreed that the state has a strong case against the accused and that the two were indeed a flight risk and could evade trial, since they fled the scene during the trap.
Ramnarain also said Raquel was likely to interfere with the investigations of the case and intimidate witnesses because of her position as a member of the crime intelligence unit.
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