A male nurse at Efata School for the Blind and Deaf and his family were held at gunpoint on Tuesday night by two armed men demanding a R50,000 “protection fee”.
The family stay in a house on the Mthatha school's property. The incident happened a day before five people accused of demanding protection fees from residents of the Efata Complex were denied bail on Wednesday.
Handing down her bail judgment, magistrate Sibongile Mqhathu said extortion was a serious crime and releasing the suspects on bail would put the lives of the witnesses and complainants at risk.
Commenting on Tuesday's attack on the family, Efata Complex community leader and crime fighter Sonwabo Mankuntywana said no one was injured “but the victim, his wife and his children were in shock and traumatised”.
The family has since gone into hiding.
Mankuntywana said the men claimed they were sent to demand the protection fee and beat the family with guns until they gave them the little money they had.
“But that was not enough. The men said he must try to borrow [money] and they will come back for it.
“They warned him that if he did not have it, they would shoot him dead,” Mankuntywana said.
Police spokesperson Colonel Siphokazi Mawasi would not comment on the incident.
“Due to the sensitive nature of these extortion cases, police have decided not to disclose any information to protect the complainants and their families,” Mawisa said.
The alleged incident occurred a week after AbaThembu King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo and police intervened in an extortion incident at Laphumikhwezi Primary School at Mandela Park in Mthatha West.
Laphumikhwezi was closed for about week after a large group of men demanded that all the rental money from the network tower pole in the school grounds be redirected to an account belonging to a traditional leader or his council.
DispatchLIVE
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.