Two suspects, aged 43 and 28, are expected to appear in the Senwabarwana Magistrate’s Court today (October 19), after an investigation into an alleged kidnapping raised suspicions that the incident had been staged, reports Polokwane Review.

The case was initially reported after the alleged victim’s relatives received a call from an unknown person demanding R50 000 and threatening to kill the woman before 8:00 if the money was not paid, police said.

Intelligence-driven operation in Gauteng

On Saturday (October 17) members of Limpopo Organised Crime Investigations, National Crime Intelligence for Kidnappings and Hillbrow Detectives conducted an intelligence-driven operation in Gauteng as part of the investigation.

Police traced and arrested the 43-year-old man, who is reportedly the woman’s boyfriend.

He allegedly told investigators that he had taken the 28-year-old woman to his family homestead in Jane Furse, in the Sekhukhune District.

Woman found in good condition

Officers went to the identified property and found the woman in what police described as good condition.

She had no visible injuries and did not report any complaints.

Kidnapping report may have been fabricated

Further investigations indicated that the kidnapping report may have been fabricated and that police had been deliberately misled.

The man allegedly made a statement under oath claiming he did not know where the woman was, leading to a charge of perjury.

Charges

Both suspects were taken to Senwabarwana police station, where a case was opened.

They face charges of extortion, perjury and defeating or obstructing the course of justice.

Commissioner warns against false reports

Provincial police commissioner Lieutenant General Jan Scheepers warned the public against making false reports and misleading police during investigations.

Scheepers said police resources needed to be directed towards genuine criminal cases and warned that false statements under oath and threats used to demand money could lead to criminal prosecution.

The allegations against both suspects have yet to be tested in court.

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