Cape Town businessman appears in court for allegedly bribing City Manager with R4 million
Shaun Roos, 56, accused of attempting to bribe a City of Cape Town official with R4 million.
Image: Supplied
The man accused of trying to bribe a City of Cape Town official with R4 million to reinstate lucrative municipal tenders has appeared in court following an undercover police operation that uncovered the bribery scheme.
The suspect, Shaun Roos, 56, allegedly attempted to influence the outcome of an investigation linked to municipal contracts worth about R1.6 billion that had been awarded to his company, Triple C Maintenance and Services.
Court documents state that the accused allegedly arranged a meeting with City manager, Lungelo Mbandazayo, in February at Table View Mall.
It is alleged that during the meeting, the accused offered the official a bribe of R4m to assist in reinstating and approving tenders previously allocated to Triple C, a Blackheath company where he is allegedly the operations manager.
The documents read: “The accused then offered the City official a bribe of R4 million in order for the said City Manager to assist in reinstating and approving the tenders that were previously allocated to Triple C.”
Investigations into the matter had been underway for several months.
In September 2025, detectives from the South African Police Service Commercial Crime Investigation unit conducted a coordinated search-and-seizure operation at 26 addresses linked to the company.
The addresses included business premises, private homes of municipal officials, and locations associated with individuals and entities that had been awarded contracts by the municipality.
The investigation relates to municipal contracts valued at approximately R1.6 billion.
City Manager Lungelo Mbandazayo.
Image: File
Police spokesperson Brigadier Novela Potelwa said that on March 3, an undercover operation was carried out at Waterstone Village Mall in Somerset West, with Mbandazayo acting as an agent.
During the operation, police seized R1.4 million, a vehicle, and a cellphone from the suspect, identified as Roos.
He later handed himself over to cops and made his first appearance in the Cape Town Magistrates' Court on March 5.
He faces a Schedule 5 corruption charge.
Meanwhile, the City of Cape Town confirmed it had already taken action against the company involved.
In a statement, the City said it had terminated all contracts with Triple C following a joint investigation by the City’s Ethics and Forensics Department and the South African Police Service.
The City said: “This follows a joint investigation involving the City’s Ethics and Forensics Department and the South African Police Service (SAPS). Acting as an authorised agent in terms of the relevant legal provisions, the City Manager worked with SAPS in a controlled operation that resulted in the arrest of the owner of the business.
“In light of these developments, the City moved immediately to terminate all contracts held by Triple C with the municipality. These contracts are mostly construction-related and include road maintenance, resurfacing, and stormwater infrastructure.
“The decision to terminate was made in the context of an ongoing investigation by the City’s Ethics and Forensics Department and the SAPS.”
The case was postponed to March 23 for Roos’ bail application.