Two trial-awaiting prisoners appeared in the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court on Friday on charges of extortion.
The suspects, aged 23 and 24, were operating an extortion racket from behind bars.
The Western Cape provincial police spokesperson, Sergeant Wesley Twigg said the duo extorted an individual for protection fees.
“Efforts to curb extortion in the Western Cape led to the arrests of two suspects on extortion-related charges. The investigation revealed that the two suspects operated from prison, extorting their victim who had to pay protection fees on a weekly basis,” Twigg said.
He said the suspects also ran a scam on Facebook from their prison cell.
“They also created a false Facebook account and used the victim’s identity to sell products of which the buyers never received the products,” Twigg said.
“The two suspects, aged 23 and 24, were arrested by the Provincial Organised Crime Detectives and appeared in the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court on Friday, October 25, 2024. They were remanded in custody,” Twigg said.
Police appeal to the public to report extortion-related incidents on the Western Cape Extortion Hotline on 0800 31 4444 so these incidents may be thoroughly investigated and perpetrators can be brought to book.
In a separate incident earlier this month, two alleged extortionists were killed and another suspect was fighting for his life in hospital after a confrontation with police on the N1 near Century City.
A team of cops dealing with extortion-related crimes received information about suspects who were allegedly extorting businesses in Joe Slovo.
Police said the suspects fired shots at the police after they noticed they were being followed and a shoot-out along the N1 near the Sable Road off-ramp ensued, resulting in the two fatalities and one suspect being seriously wounded.