An alleged underworld kingpin on Thursday told a court “Cape Town police are captured”.
According to Colin Booysen, “vuil cops” have been targeting him and had orchestrated the trial currently underway at the Cape Town Regional Court.
Booysen, Nafiz Modack, Ashley Fields and Jacques Cronje are on trial for money laundering and extortion linked to a violent takeover of the local nightclub security industry.
The fifth accused, Carl Lakay, was murdered in August last year in the driveway of his Goodwood home.
COURT POSTPONED: Colin Booysen, on trial for money laundering, pictured with his lawyer, Bruce Hendricks.
The group was nabbed in December 2017 for allegedly trying to extort R369 000 from The Grand Africa Café and Beach near the V&A Waterfront.
That amount was later reduced to R90 000.
Investigating officer, Lieutenant Colonel Charl Kinnear, took the stand for a second day when Booysen’s defence lawyer, Advocate Bruce Hendricks, dropped some bombshells.
“It is my instruction that certain members of the police, together with (controversial businessman and Booysen’s rival) Mark Lifman and associates orchestrated this case against the accused.
“My client is calling this ‘Cape capture’.”
Booysen and Fields have also filed charges at Cape Town Central SAPS against cops, Major-General Jeremy Vearey and Captain Sharon Japhta, which are currently being investigated by police bosses in Kwa-Zulu Natal.
“These cases emanated during the bail application. The accused were undressed in front of other officers in the cells. Are you aware of this?” Hendricks asked, and Kinnear said “no”.
The court also heard that Japhta, who initiated the extortion investigation in November 2017, never handed over her own statement yet, even though the prosecutor asked for it in May last year already.
Magistrate Byron Pedro was taken aback by this and asked Kinnear: “This captain plays a pivotal role and started this investigation, and nothing?”
Kinnear replied: “I would have gone to get the statement last Monday, but Japhta was ill.”
GRILLED: Lieut-Col. Charl Kinnear.
Hendricks also grilled Kinnear on the fact that stakeholders in The Grand, who lost money due to the alleged extortion, were not part of his case against the accused.
“Do you have any evidence like CCTV (footage), images or anything that shows the R90 000 was handed over to anyone, any evidence except the witness statements?” he asked Kinnear, who again responded with “no”.
The state concluded its case on Thursday.