Cornered cop tries to SWALLOW bribe

What do you do if you're a traffic cop caught demanding a bribe?

One option may be to try to swallow the cash - though it didn't work for a high-ranking officer in the Zimbabwe capital of Harare, reports say.

The Herald newspaper said the officer in charge of Mbare police station in Harare's oldest township on Wednesday tried to swallow a $60 bribe she'd demanded from a motorist who'd had his car impounded at a roadblock.

Chief Inspector Sigauke - her first name was not given - also allegedly bit a police officer's hand when she realised she'd been trapped, the paper reported. The motorist had alerted other officers before he handed over the money.

Anger is running high at allegations of police corruption, especially at roadblocks. Police Commissioner Augustine Chihuri, who has been police chief since the early 1990s, last week denied that a palatial mansion in Harare's Gletwin suburb was his. Not everyone is convinced.