Two rival gangs of extortionists, with strongholds in Khayelitsha, operate across the Western Cape. They have such expansive networks that their influence extends beyond the province and may involve corrupt cops.

Members of the Boko Haram gang in Khayelitsha broke away at some point and formed another gang, The Guptas. These two rival gangs have been responsible for extreme violence in areas across Cape Town.

This is according to a Western Cape High Court judgment, delivered on Wednesday, 22 November, that elaborates on the reach of, and dangers associated with, Boko Haram and The Guptas.

ANC infiltrated

The judgment is based on a mass shooting that took place in Khayelitsha in March 2020 - seven people were killed and seven others, including a child aged six, were wounded.

In May 2021, Daily Maverick reported that the same two gangs - Boko Haram and The Guptas - were behind a massacre that saw 12 people being gunned down in Khayelitsha.

The Boko Haram gang has previously been flagged as active in Tshwane, where its members were believed to have infiltrated the ANC.

About two years ago the South African Police Service (SAPS) arrested suspected Boko Haram members in Gauteng "after business people in and around Mamelodi alleged that they were forced to pay monies to the suspects in exchange for some kind of 'protection' for themselves and their businesses."...