---
title: "Watch – How 750m in Cape Town’s city centre points to South Africa’s expansive extortion problem"
description: "Extortion is a massive problem in South Africa. It affects many industries, areas and individuals – and crimes in this arena can prove fatal, people have before been murdered."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "VIDEO"
author: "Caryn Dolley"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/caryn-dolley/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-10-14-watch-how-750m-in-cape-towns-city-centre-points-to-south-africas-expansive-extortion-problem/"
published: "2024-10-14T22:19:38"
updated: "2024-10-15T09:53:20"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 115
---

# Watch – How 750m in Cape Town’s city centre points to South Africa’s expansive extortion problem

> Extortion is a massive problem in South Africa. It affects many industries, areas and individuals – and crimes in this arena can prove fatal, people have before been murdered.

By Caryn Dolley · Published 15 October 2024, 00:19 SAST · Updated 15 October 2024, 11:53 SAST

## Content

Railway tracks and construction sites have been disrupted and extortionists even go after pensioners.

**Read more:**[Timothy Lotter – Cold case heats up as cops look into 2020 Cape Town killing of security boss](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-10-13-timothy-lotter-cold-case-heats-up-as-cops-look-into-2020-cape-town-killing-of-security-boss/)

Restaurants and entertainment venues are also targeted.

This video shows how a stretch of around 750m in Cape Town’s city centre has been the focus of extortion and related accusations for years. It points to how deeply entrenched and intricate South Africa’s “protection fee” problem really is.

[YouTube video: "YouTube video"](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGZNDHXBOxE)

Reporting by: Caryn Dolley
Filmed by: Bernard Kotze
Edited by: Rufaro Chiswo
Produced by: Emilie Gambade.**DM**

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