A father and son who allegedly solicited a bribe to write off a R500‚000 electricity debt owed by a resident in Johannesburg had their plan short-circuited by the Hawks.
The pair will appear in the Johannesburg Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Wednesday. The two were employed by a City Power contractor‚ hired to conduct audits on electricity metres.
“It is alleged that the suspects approached the resident‚ whose account is said to be in arrears‚ and told him that they would write off his R500‚000 debt‚ provided a payment of R150‚000 is made to them‚” said Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba in a statement.
“Allegedly‚ they demanded R40‚000 before they could take any action on the account. The resident agreed to pay the money to the contractor and requested that they come to his place of work to collect the cash. The resident then informed the City’s Group Forensic and Investigation Services (GFIS) team which set up a sting operation together with the members of the Hawks.”