Sixth man held over Cape Town extortion racket

A sixth suspect has been arrested in connection with a massive Cape Town extortion racket.

Grant Veroni will be fighting for bail alongside Nafiz Modack‚ Colin Booysen‚ Ashley Fields‚ Jacques Cronje and Carl Lakay after he was arrested on Monday for allegedly extorting the Bungalow restaurant in Clifton in December.

The latter five men were arrested on December 15 and have been trying to get bail ever since. Colonel Charl Kinnear‚ the investigating officer in the case‚ is expected to continue his testimony in Cape Town Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday.

Since late last year he has testified against the men in an attempt to deny them bail. But lawyers representing the accused say the state orchestrated delays in order to keep the men behind bars over the festive season. They have also alluded to an apparent conspiracy by police against the individuals.

Senior advocate Dirk Uys told the court last week that members of a police unit threw Modack's sarong into his prison toilet‚ and the court has also heard claims that his life is in danger in Pollsmoor prison‚ Tokai.

The men are accused of running a syndicate which has been responsible for multiple murders and assaults. Senior police officials have also been implicated in the case.