Mbombela - A former Mpumalanga police constable was jailed for three years by the Nelspruit Regional Court on Wednesday for taking a R500 bribe to release a man.
Steven Whisky Shabangu, 37, from Mkhuhlu, near Hazyview, had demanded a R1000 bribe from Trudy Richards to release her brother, who was under police guard at Themba Hospital, a Sapa correspondent reported.
At the time, Shabangu was a police constable, stationed at the Kabokweni police station.
Richards alerted Shabangu's colleagues and a sting operation was set-up.
She phoned him from the police station and placed the call on loud-speaker for the police to hear her promise to pay him R500.
Shabangu was arrested when he took the money from Richards.
In evidence in mitigation of sentence, Shabangu's lawyer Daniel Mabunda submitted that his dismissal from the police was punishment enough.
In passing sentence, magistrate Andre Geldenhuys said he had taken this into consideration. He allowed Shabangu the opportunity to apply for parole after serving a year.
Sapa