Arrests and bribes: Why SA celebs can’t stay out of trouble

Controversial socialite Zodwa Wabantu has claimed that the police officers who recently arrested her for allegedly breaking lockdown rules solicited a bribe from her.

In a video shared to her Instagram profile, Zodwa showed the officers congregated in the entryway of the area at the police station where she was being held.

She accused the officers of “demanding” the bribe shortly after her arrest on Women’s Day in KwaThema, east of Johannesburg.

Watch as Kaunda Selisho and Sandi Mbele break down Zodwa Wabantu’s arrest

“You’re the one who told me that you want to trend,” said Zodwa to one of the female officers who can be seen filming a video of her as she films them.

This after they told her that she was in contravention of the Disaster Management Act (DMA) by being out on the road during curfew hours, which are currently set between 10pm and 4am.

Zodwa then shows the officers a permit granted to her company on the official Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) letterhead, granting her permission to be on the road during those hours because of her job.

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A post shared by zodwalibram (@zodwalibram)

Subsequently, Zodwa appeared at the Randburg Magistrates Court on Thursday, where she was granted bail after telling the court she was returning from a gig when officers pulled her over. 

“They asked for the permit, I answered that I am eight minutes from home.”

Zodwa says the permit was on her phone, however, and she did not have a printed copy. 

Travelling a long distance and with a small group of people, she says her phone’s battery went flat. 

“When we wanted to charge [the phone], they were already frustrated and I don’t know by what. Then they went for the driver, that is where everything escalated.”

She claims that another officer said: “Zodwa you are a public figure we don’t want this to be big.”

The reality star then alleges that another cop she was negotiating with suggested that she pay a bribe. 

“I was going to do it, it is my brand, I have worked so hard, I was going to pay him… I was going to pay the R5,000,” added Zodwa Wabantu. 

The only thing that kept her from paying the bribe? She says she did not have the cash.

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