Eastern Cape extortion: Caller demands ‘R50k from school fees’ over alleged ‘affair’

One of the school-related extortion cases under investigation in the Eastern Cape involves allegations of an affair between a principal and their deputy.

The South African Police Service (Saps) made this disclosure during a presentation to the Select Committee on Education in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) on Tuesday.

Saps officials, along with representatives from the Department of Education, briefed Members of Parliament (MPs) on the safety measures implemented in schools and provided an update on the extortion incidents affecting Eastern Cape schools.

The Citizen previously reported on the closure of five schools in Mthatha after criminals demanded money from the teachers and other staff members.

ALSO READ: ‘Pay up or die!’ − Eastern Cape under siege from extortion syndicates

The schools affected include Sinolwazi Senior Secondary School, Bambanani Junior Secondary School, Mokolweni Junior Secondary School, and Laphumikhwezi Junior Secondary School.

Teachers at these schools stopped working due to threats and, in some cases, assaults.

There were also reports of teachers renting property in Mthatha being forced to pay between R500 and R1 000 monthly for protection.

The extortion incidents have also resulted in the closure of several businesses in the area.

Eastern Cape extortion cases under investigation

During Tuesday’s meeting, Major-General Thokozani Mathonsi from Saps’ Visible Policing and Operations Division presented to the committee, revealing that four extortion cases had been registered with the police and were currently under investigation.

“All of them are under investigation. They are being investigated at a provincial level, and we are hoping that we can make a breakthrough.

“At this stage, unless there’s a recent development, we do not have any arrests as yet, but investigations are progressing,” said Mathonsi.

In one case, a principal and deputy principal in Mthatha received a phone call from an unknown person demanding R50 000 from the school.

READ MORE: Eastern Cape extortionists invade school for the blind and demand R50K

The caller accused the deputy of having an affair with the principal.

The police have filed a Section 205 application, allowing investigators to access private information in order to trace the phone number used in the extortion attempt.

In two other cases, suspects allegedly approached schools, demanding payment for the rental of a Vodacom network tower installed on the premises.

The police are currently tracing the suspects.

Extortion cases targeting small businesses

Police Minister Senzo Mchunu recently revealed that the police have investigated more than 300 extortion cases targeting small businesses across the country since 1 April 2023.

The Western Cape had the highest number of cases, with 119 reported, followed by the Eastern Cape with 71.

The Northern Cape is the only province with no open extortion cases currently under investigation.

In terms of arrests, police have apprehended 251 suspects in connection with extortion crimes during the same period.

READ MORE: Mchunu says ‘more extortion going on than meets the eye’ as police ramp up war

Once again, the Western Cape recorded the highest number of arrests, with 69 suspects taken into custody, followed by Gauteng with 59 arrests.

North West ranked third with 35 arrests, while KZN and the Eastern Cape recorded 34 and 27 arrests, respectively.

In Limpopo, 18 suspects were arrested, and Mpumalanga reported nine arrests.

No arrests have been made in the Free State or Northern Cape.

Mchunu further indicated that there have been no convictions in respect of any of these cases, to date, as they were currently on the court roll.