A court interpreter accused of soliciting a bribe of R2 500 from the family of an alleged rapist appeared at the Mhala Regional Court in Mpumalanga. Timothy Sibuyi (47) was released on R5000 bail after he appeared in court where he is an employee. He was charged with corruption.

Hawks spokesperson Captain Dineo Sekgotodi said allegations are that on November 17, 2022, Sibuyi approached the brother of an accused person who was arrested for a rape case. "He invited him to his office at Mhala Magistrates Court where he told the man that since his brother was not legally represented by a Legal Aid attorney, he could arrange legal representative for a fee," said Sekgotodi. The matter was reported to the police and then the case was transferred to the Hawks in Nelspruit for further probe.

When Sibuyi was offered R1 000 by the family of the accused, he refused it, telling them the money was too little. "He demanded R2 500. The family organised the money and R2 500 was deposited into his Capitec bank account. After the accused heard that a corruption case was opened against him, he went back to the family to pay the money back," Sekgotodi said. Its alleged that Sibuyi approached the mother of the accused and paid R2 000 back and promised to settle the outstanding amount later. After thorough investigation by the Hawks, a warrant for his arrest was authorised. The provincial head of the Hawks in Mpumalanga, Major-General Nicolas Gerber, has applauded the law enforcement team "for the speedy finalisation of the case". Gerber urged community members to report instances where money is solicited from them by corrupt officials. "This is not an isolated incident. Corruption will not stop if we as citizens do not report and say, enough is enough," said Gerber. The case was postponed to October 16.