Security guards in a small white bakkie escort a City of Cape Town refuse truck in Philippi. Extortion gangs say they, and not security companies, should be paid to protect City workers. Photo: GroundUp/Sandiso Phaliso
SA’s business landscape is under siege from increasingly organised criminal networks known as business mafias and extortion rings.
The groups, which began by extorting the construction sector in KwaZulu-Natal, have now expanded their operations across multiple industries and provinces such as the Eastern Cape, where local business have closed down due to extortion, according to crime experts.
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This has led Business Unity South Africa (Busa) to call for the SA Police Service’s (Saps) Crime Intelligence to intervene.
Khulekani Mathe, Busa’s CEO designate, said there was a distressing case in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape, involving an ophthalmologist who was compelled to shut down his practice due to continuous demands for extortion.
“This closure not only impacted the doctor’s livelihood but also deprived the local community of crucial medical services, forcing residents to travel long distances to receive care,” he said.
“The prevalence of such incidents emphasises the urgent need for Crime Intelligence to intervene.
“The involvement of its services is crucial to identifying and dismantling these organised crime groups,” Mathe said.
Although the business community was prepared to cooperate with the government, “it is ultimately an issue of upholding the rule of law that necessitates decisive government action” Mathe added.
Willem Els, senior training coordinator at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS), said the presence of business mafias revealed broader systemic issues within South Africa, particularly within the criminal justice system. Els said a lack of political will was a significant factor contributing to the problem.
“Without strong political commitment, it creates a domino effect that impacts the entire system.
“The overwhelming level of criminality in the country further exacerbates the issue.”
“For any organised crime syndicate to succeed, they need protection from senior state actors, whether in politics or within the police force,” Els said.
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Saps announced the deployment of additional resources to the Eastern Cape to address gang violence and extortion.
The deployment includes specialised teams from organised crime, serious and violent crime units, the National Intervention Unit and Crime Intelligence.
Saps said the teams will support existing provincial efforts to dismantle gangs involved in extorting protection fees from businesses.
Fannie Masemola, the national commissioner of Saps, said communities cannot be held at ransom. He urged community members to produce the names of these extortionists.
“We urge communities to report all forms of criminality to us and who these people are, to enable us to build watertight cases that will be able to stand up in court,” he said.
In relation to sporadic incidents of violence and extortion at construction sites and business across the country, Masemola said 722 extortionists have been arrested in the past five years.
“A total of 52 were found guilty and collectively sentenced to 89 years and seven months’ imprisonment.
“Another 93 cases are still under investigation where groupings and individuals of interest have been identified,” he stated.
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Crime expert Chris de Kock noted the spread of criminal activities in rural areas, where citizens were forced to pay for protection.
“In certain areas, women are now paying R50 a day for protection against rape. It shows that something is fundamentally wrong in our society,” De Kock said.
He acknowledged a significant decline in the effectiveness of SA’s intelligence services since 2012 and attributed it to widespread corruption.
“Intelligence services became dysfunctional due to heavy politicisation and corruption, leading to a neglect of fighting organised crime,” he said.
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