Pretoria - Gauteng Traffic Police have taken a firm stance against corruption and warned the public against attempts at bribing law enforcement officials, following the arrest of two men in Tshwane this week.
The police said that they had arrested two men, aged 40 and 60, for alleged bribery and corruption, during a law enforcement operation on Tuesday in Soutter Street in Pretoria West.
Police officers attached to the Pretoria Service Point stopped a heavy motor vehicle in order to see if it was roadworthy. During inspection of the vehicle, it emerged that the driver didn’t have a professional driving permit.
Officers also noticed that the vehicle was heavily loaded. They instructed the driver to drive the truck to the weighbridge.
The owner of the truck, however, detected through a tracking device that the truck was being escorted to the weighbridge to determine the overload. He then apparently asked that the truck not to be taken to the weighbridge.
The owner then indicated that they were going to “make a plan” to release it.
Both the driver and the owner then allegedly offered the officers an amount of R2 000 for the driver not to be charged, as well as for the truck not to be taken to the weighbridge.
As a result, the officers arrested both the driver and a passenger for alleged bribery and corruption.
Gauteng Traffic Police spokesperson Sello Maremane said the suspects were detained at the Pretoria West police station and were expected to appear in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court soon.
“Bribery and corruption derail the good intention of the existence of the rule of the law, and are a major setback in the creation of safer communities.
“Any form of bribery, including receiving monetary rewards in return for any favour on Gauteng roads, will not be tolerated.
“We wish to commend these officers for their sterling work in ensuring that we root out bribery and corrupt elements in the province,” said Maremane.
Members of the public were urged to report anyone found to be involved in any corrupt activity.
Pretoria News