Metro cop arrested for bribery

Senior Superintendent Isaac Mahamba said the officer was arrested in Hammanskraal on Wednesday.

 

The officer had stopped a car and the driver acknowledged it was not roadworthy.

 

"The member told him to give him R100 and the motorist later lodged a formal complaint and our member was arrested late yesterday [Wednesday]," he said.

 

"We are urging members of the public to come forward if our members are involved in corruption.

 

The department applauds members of the public who come forward. When our members insist on a bribe they should report it."

 

He said the man was expected to appear in a Pretoria court on Thursday.

 

Mahamba said this was the third officer from the department arrested this week. 

 

Two officers were arrested on Tuesday for allegedly soliciting a bribe from Crime Line head Yusuf Abramjee.

He said the department was worried, but not all officers were corrupt.

"We are worried, we want to render a clean service to the community," he said.

"On the same note we are still saying not all our members ask for bribes and we are warning our members."

On Monday, Abramjee alerted authorities that two metro officers had stopped him for speeding and asked for a bribe to avoid him getting a speeding ticket, Mahamba said at the time. He refused to pay up and the officers let him go.

The two officers were operating a speed trap camera in Centurion.

They were not supposed to stop speeding motorists but were meant to take the camera's film back to their office, where fines would be drawn up and sent to the speedsters.

The two officers stopped the speeding investigator tasked to carry out the entrapment. 

 

They demanded a R200 bribe from him.

 

They were arrested and charged with corruption and bribery, Mahamba said.

 

The pair were found with crumpled notes in their pockets.

 

"One was found with R1200 and other had R710," said Mahamba.

 

He said they would not hesitate to fire corrupt officials.

 

"Many officers are doing their best and we know there are a few who are corrupt," he said.

 

(File photo: Gallo Images)