Pensioner extorted of R55 000: third suspect arrested in Botshabelo tavern raid

A 41-year-old man wanted in connection with the kidnapping and extortion of a 67-year-old pensioner in Welkom has been arrested in Botshabelo, the South African Police Service said in a media statement issued through the office of the Free State provincial commissioner.

The pensioner was extorted of R55 000 on 14 August 2026 in Welkom, according to the statement. The 41-year-old is the third person arrested in the case.

Members of the Mangaung Metro District Operational Command Centre and Selosesha Crime Intelligence acted on information after the suspect was spotted by an off-duty police official at about 22:00 on Saturday, 17 October 2026. He was apprehended near a tavern in J Section, Botshabelo, on counts of kidnapping, extortion and impersonating a police official. Police confiscated his cellphone and say it will form part of the investigation.

The statement says that during the tracing of the suspect it emerged he had left his place of residence in an attempt to evade arrest, following the earlier arrests of others linked to the case. The two other suspects, both aged 37, were arrested during September and October and remain in custody.

The Free State Provincial Organised Crime Unit is not ruling out the possibility of more arrests.

The 41-year-old is expected to make his first appearance in the Welkom Magistrate’s Court on Monday, 19 October 2026. Sergeant Palesa Thabana is the contact named on the statement.

The statement is a police summary of the case rather than the court record, and the charges against the three suspects have not been tested in court.

Source: South African Police Service (SAPS), https://www.saps.gov.za/newsroom/msspeechdetail.php?nid=71931