Taxi boss Joe Sibanyoni appears in court over R2.2 million extortion claims

Taxi mogul Madoda Johannes Sibanyoni, known as Joe Ferrari, appeared in the Kwaggafontein Magistrates Court this week alongside three co-accused on allegations of extortion amounting to R2.2 million.

The National Prosecuting Authority alleges that between 2022 and 2025 in the Nkangala District, the accused unlawfully pressured a businessman to pay a protection fee. The accused allegedly threatened to shut down the complainant’s business operations if he failed to comply.

Sibanyoni’s advocate, former national director of public prosecutions Shaun Abrahams, argued in court that his client had a business relationship with the complainant. However, a source close to the case told the Sunday Times that no such relationship existed. The source claimed the extortion involved a protection fee related to the construction of Moloto Road, where Sibanyoni allegedly demanded a cut from the project.

The case has drawn renewed attention to Sibanyoni’s rise from a taxi driver in 1985 to a wealthy businessman with interests in transport, mining, construction and property. He is executive president of the South African Local and Long Distance Taxi and Bus Organisation and a key executive of the South African National Taxi Council.

The Madlanga Commission has also put Sibanyoni in the spotlight, with investigators alleging he is a key figure in a so-called Big Five cartel accused of manipulating police investigations and controlling taxi routes through violence and extortion. The commission has heard testimony about his relationship with a suspended police sergeant who allegedly sent him confidential police documents.

In January 2024, Sibanyoni addressed President Cyril Ramaphosa at a royal gathering, threatening to fight for a stake in bus company Putco and local mines. Months later, more than 50 Putco buses were torched in coordinated attacks in Mpumalanga. The motive remains unclear.

In August 2022, Sibanyoni survived an assassination attempt when gunmen opened fire on him outside the Centurion Golf Estate. He was shot twice in the stomach. Ballistic evidence linked the weapons to 18 other serious crimes, including the murder of DJ Sumbody. A rival taxi boss is accused of orchestrating the hit.

Sibanyoni and his co-accused are expected back in court on a date still to be confirmed.