[imagesource:here]

Food and grocery delivery drivers in an upscale Cape Town suburb are being extorted, with criminals demanding protection fees ranging from R300 to R500 per month.

Sources told News24 that these extortionists are preying on scooter drivers from the Imizamo Yethu informal settlement, who work in Hout Bay.

The news outlet interviewed several food, grocery, and takeaway drivers, all of whom were too scared to reveal their identities, fearing they were easy targets for extortion.

Their fear was so intense that they requested the deletion of messages and recordings immediately after the interview, terrified of the potential consequences of speaking out.

“You can’t trust anyone these days,” one driver confessed.

“We’ve seen people get killed for refusing to pay these protection fees. No one wants to be the next victim.”

Another noted how easy it is to spot the victims on the road because they drive scooters, adding that most of the drivers are foreign nationals. Sadly, these cases go unreported as the victims believe the police won’t take the matter seriously enough.

In response to the rising threats, Woolworths has temporarily suspended its Dash same-day delivery service in Hout Bay. Spokesperson Rachel Alberts confirmed the suspension, citing escalating security concerns for the drivers.

“The safety of our drivers is our top priority. We are closely monitoring the situation and are in contact with local authorities to resolve these issues,” she said.

Drivers said that the extortion began last year when they were approached by two armed men while waiting outside a popular store for orders.

“They told us that they run the area and that we had to start paying a fee to operate.”

One driver said he suspects the extortionists are operating from a list, systematically targeting different drivers at various times to enforce their protection fees. According to the drivers, companies aren’t stepping up to combat extortion, leaving them vulnerable and exposed to these criminal networks.

While drivers working in the Cape Town city centre are mostly spared from these rackets, few can afford to live there. As a result, many must return to their communities after completing deliveries, only to face extortion gangs waiting for them.

Some companies are making difficult decisions around the issue. Hout Bay customers have been advised to use Woolworths’ scheduled delivery service, with hopes that Dash will resume soon, while Pick n Pay has also suspended its ASAP delivery service in Hout Bay – although the company attributed the decision to taxi strikes rather than extortion.

Checkers Sixty60 said its delivery service was never operational in Hout Bay due to “extensive risk assessments” identifying potential safety issues.

Unfortunately, extortion is widespread across Cape Town, not just in Hout Bay, notes the director of Community Crime Prevention (CCP) Keri Cross.

“I don’t believe enough is being done about crime, which is why we founded CCP,” she said.

Mayco member for Safety and Security JP Smith said the “aggressive extortion by taxis” was affecting drivers from Imizamo Yethu specifically, and not the entire Hout Bay area. He also highlighted a critical difference between delivery drivers and those targeted by the so-called construction mafia: the latter are more resilient and better able to defend themselves.

“Delivery drivers are often too afraid to report these incidents, fearing exposure and retaliation,” he explained.

Ward councillor for Hout Bay and Mayco Member for Urban Mobility, Rob Quintas, notes that extortion in Hout Bay has existed for some time, with Takealot being one of the first companies affected.

He has urged retailers to proactively open cases with SAPS when faced with extortion threats, allowing for increased visibility from the City and police, who can attempt to curb the extortion.

[source:news24]