Cape Town - Two police officials who allegedly demanded money for the release of a man arrested for drunken driving, appeared in a court in Cape Town for the second time, on Thursday.
Mzoxolo Toto, 32, and Khululekani Mndlunya, 34, both formerly based at the Nyanga police station, are charged with extortion, corruption and assault.
They appeared in the Specialised Commercial Crime Court in Bellville, before magistrate Sabrina Sonnenberg, who warned them to appear again on May 20.
Legal Aid defence attorney Harley Cloete told the court that he would represent Mndlunya, while Toto is represented, also free of charge, by Judicare.
Cloete said he needed a postponement for consultation purposes.
According to the charge sheet, they were on patrol in the early hours of the morning in June 2013, when they stopped a car and accused the driver, Sisa Yanta, of drunk driving.
They told Yanta they were taking him to the Athlone police station for a blood test, and Yanta lamented that he needed to be at his place of work early in the morning.
Prosecutor Xolile Jonas alleges that they suggested to Yanta that they “talk about it”.
Yanta understood this to mean that they wanted money for his release, and offered them R50.
According to the charge sheet, the two police officials considered the R50 an insult, and laughed at him.
Yanta offered to get more money from his father, and they then followed him to his parental home.
The father, who is also a police official, asked the two policemen why they wanted money. They allegedly replied: “Your son knows why.”
The two policemen became suspicious when the father started asking “too many questions”, and called for backup.
According to the charge sheet, seven police vehicles arrived, and the father and son were arrested.
The father, who was allegedly assaulted in the process, was released from custody the next day.
African News Agency
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