Mpumalanga taxi boss Joe Sibanyoni, also known as Joe “Ferrari”, and his co-accused have formally withdrawn their urgent High Court application that sought to stop the re-enrolment of their extortion case.The withdrawal effectively clears the way for the criminal proceedings to continue and for previously issued warrants of arrest to be executed.

The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) confirmed that it received a notice of withdrawal from the defence on Friday, ending the legal bid that had been set down for hearing at the Mbombela High Court.

The application had initially been brought in an attempt to interdict the execution of a J50 warrant of arrest, which was due to be enforced at the Delmas Magistrate’s Court.Sibanyoni and co-accused Oupa Johannes “Bafana” Sindane argued that enforcing the warrants would cause them irreparable harm.The group had earlier been arrested in May on charges of extortion and money laundering, alongside co-accused Mvimbi Masilela and Philemon Msiza.

The state alleges that between 2022 and 2025, the accused forced Mpumalanga mining entrepreneur Tengani Ntuli, director of Tengane Mining, to pay more than R2.2 million in so-called protection fees.

The case had previously been struck off the court roll after a prosecutor failed to appear during a bail application, but the NPA later moved to have it re-enrolled.The NPA confirmed that the withdrawal now allows the criminal matter to proceed without further delay.

It also noted ongoing developments involving a complaint to the Magistrates Commission against chief magistrate Tuletu Tonjeni, which is currently under investigation.

The National Director of Public Prosecutions, Adv Andy Mothibi, has reiterated that the authority will pursue all lawful avenues to ensure accountability and uphold the rule of law in the matter.