Members of the Hawks serious corruption investigation team bust an extortion ring involving eight prisoners at the Zonderwater correctional centre in Gauteng on Friday.
Free State police spokesperson W/O Fikiswa Matoti said the Hawks, assisted by the prison emergency support team, uncovered the syndicate when they raided the cells at the Cullinan prison.
The search was prompted by a complaint about a WhatsApp extortion scheme in which a Hawks officer was impersonated.
“In April 2025, an advocate from the National Prosecuting Authority reported to the Hawks serious corruption investigation unit in Bloemfontein that an attorney representing an accused person had raised concerns about these messages.
“The accused’s wife allegedly received WhatsApp communication from someone introducing themselves as a police officer who claimed to be working with the state prosecutor handling the case. The individual demanded payment to end the prosecution,” said Matoti.
The suspect claimed to have influence over an active criminal matter and offered to have the trial against an accused person terminated in exchange for a payment of R200,000.
The Hawks initiated an investigation, which traced the origin of the messages to the correctional facility and the eight inmates.
Officers recovered cellphones, notebooks, and documents.
TimesLIVE
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