The Minister of Police, Senzo Mchunu, says that it is critical that the South African Police Service (SAPS) effectively tackle the issue of extortion gangs across the country that are holding businesses and communities hostage.

“It’s quite a worrying trend, and it poses a challenge that must be dealt with head-on. It’s criminal, and people [just trying to run their businesses or live their lives] have been turned into victims,” Mchunu told 702.

These comments follow the recent decision by the SAPS National Commissioner, Fannie Masemola, to deploy “extra capacity to the Eastern Cape province to clampdown on extortionists and gangs,” where it has reached a crisis point, particularly in Mthata.

Three senior officers, including the head of organised crime, specialised operations, and intelligence from SAPS National Headquarters, have been deployed to the Eastern Cape, each with dedicated teams under their command.

Criminal syndicates in Mthatha are demanding protection money from businesses, schools, and healthcare facilities, which has resulted in these businesses, schools, and others closing their doors after being threatened with not paying.

According to Jenni Irish Qhobosheane, a researcher at the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, “extortion is the practice of obtaining money, goods, or services through the use of actual or implied violence or force.”

Although the issue has reached a crisis point in Mthata, it is not unique to the area; its severity and prevalence are increasing across the country.

“Extortion is a rapidly worsening problem throughout South Africa,” she added.

South Africa is facing a growing crisis due to the rise of organised crime syndicates, such as the construction and water tanker mafias, which are severely impacting critical sectors.

Yet another one has emerged.

On Friday, 16 August, BusinessTech reported about the rise in businesses (and communities) across South Africa being targeted by criminal syndicates dubbed ‘protection mafias’, and those who refuse to pay face an uphill battle to keep their doors open.

These criminal syndicates demand “protection fees” from business owners and threaten (and use) violence or sabotage if payments are not made.

This illegal practice has escalated to the point where it has severely disrupted business operations, with it being reported as very prevalent accross the country.

As an example, “the City of Cape Town is host to a menacing shadow economy, with money, services and goods being extorted from an increasingly wide range of businesses, including spaza shops, nightclubs, construction and transport companies, as well as individuals,” said Irish Qhobosheane.

SAPS said that it is “making inroads in dealing decisively with gangs demanding extortion fees from businesses, but concedes that more needs to be done.”

Following the deployment of SAPS personnel to try to tackle these issues, Masemola said that “the challenge that we are having is that community members are reluctant to report incidents of extortion,” given the violent nature of these groups.

“We urge our communities to come forward and report all forms of criminality to us and who these people are,  to enable us to effect more arrests and ensure we build water-tight cases that will be able to stand in court.”

“For us to pin down these extortionists, we need witnesses. We urge the communities cooperation in this regard. We have dedicated teams that are assigned to these cases. We are also looking at increasing capacity to register more cases and ensure takedowns”, said Masemola.

However, Eastern Cape Chamber of Business president Vuyisile Ntlabathi alleges that apart from fears of violence against those reporting the groups, some police are working with the groups.

“Some of the police people have been conniving with these guys, so they need new faces, and some must be transferred elsewhere. So people need to have confidence,” Ntlabathi told the SABC.

“They have not been reporting some cases because we knew that once we report a case, certain police people, you report it to those guys, and then you get a phone call. So businesses closed and people lived in fear,” he added.

SAPS said that over the past five years, 722 extortionists have been arrested across the country for violence and extortion at construction sites and businesses.

Of these, 52 have been convicted and received a combined 89 years and 7 months in prison. Investigations are ongoing in 93 cases involving identified individuals and groups. Major problem areas include the Western, Eastern, and Northern Cape, Free State, Limpopo, North West, and Mpumalanga provinces.

source:Taking criminal mafias in South Africa head-on – BusinessTech