The increase in extortion in some parts of South Africa has prompted concerned citizens to demand the government intervene.
The Sunday Times reported at the weekend residents in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape are living in fear as extortionists have infiltrated communities where they intimidate them. The sister publication of TimesLIVE reported not even bereaved families are spared.
A Gqeberha funeral parlour owner, who asked to remain anonymous due to safety concerns, confirmed her association was aware of extortion targeting undertakers transporting bodies between the provinces. She said extortion had infiltrated the funeral industry.
“In Gqeberha our clients no longer want tents at funerals because they say they attract criminals who barge in and rob the mourners. They also target mourners for funeral insurance money. That is the extent to which criminality has embedded itself in society.”
In KwaZulu-Natal six suspects wanted for crimes including murder and extortion were killed during a shoot-out with police in Durban. The incident occurred shortly before midnight on Monday at South Beach in the Point area.
Police spokesperson Col Robert Netshiunda said: “Police were tracing suspects who shot five people and killed four execution-style on Siyaphambili Road in Tshelimnyama in Mariannhill on Sunday night. Five men were seated on the side of the road drinking alcohol when the suspects arrived in a vehicle armed with pistols and a rifle and ordered the victims to lie down before shooting them.”
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The increase in extortion in some parts of South Africa has prompted concerned citizens to demand the government intervene.
The Sunday Times reported at the weekend residents in Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape are living in fear as extortionists have infiltrated communities where they intimidate them. The sister publication of TimesLIVE reported not even bereaved families are spared.
A Gqeberha funeral parlour owner, who asked to remain anonymous due to safety concerns, confirmed her association was aware of extortion targeting undertakers transporting bodies between the provinces. She said extortion had infiltrated the funeral industry.
“In Gqeberha our clients no longer want tents at funerals because they say they attract criminals who barge in and rob the mourners. They also target mourners for funeral insurance money. That is the extent to which criminality has embedded itself in society.”
In KwaZulu-Natal six suspects wanted for crimes including murder and extortion were killed during a shoot-out with police in Durban. The incident occurred shortly before midnight on Monday at South Beach in the Point area.
Police spokesperson Col Robert Netshiunda said: “Police were tracing suspects who shot five people and killed four execution-style on Siyaphambili Road in Tshelimnyama in Mariannhill on Sunday night. Five men were seated on the side of the road drinking alcohol when the suspects arrived in a vehicle armed with pistols and a rifle and ordered the victims to lie down before shooting them.”
TimesLIVE
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