An eighth police officer, a former officer and two women have been taken in for questioning after the arrest of seven public order police (POP) unit officials in connection with alleged extortion of shopkeepers in Cape Town.
Police spokesperson Col Andrè Traut said the seven officials, aged between 24 and 43, allegedly took cash “for protection” from two shops owned by Chinese nationals in Milnerton.
The case was assigned to the anti-corruption unit and serious and violent crime unit detectives.
The officers were arrested on Sunday evening, followed by the arrest of the eighth, also from the POP unit, on Monday night.
“Provincial detectives also took three civilians, one male who is a former police officer and two females, in for questioning relating to the same incident,” Traut said.
The accused are due to appear in the Cape Town magistrate’s court on Wednesday where they will face charges of extortion, business robbery and corruption.
TimesLIVE
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