Table View officer, Ella Moses, 43, had dark circles under her eyes as she walked into the court in a black tracksuit.

As an officer led her to the dock, she nodded at police officials seated in the front bench.

Magistrate Bea Vermeulen postponed the matter for a bail application next Wednesday.

This meant Moses, who faced a charge of defeating the ends of justice, would remain behind bars for close to a week.

At the weekend, police were in the process of arresting a person in Scottsdene for possession of an unlicensed firearm when Moses and an unknown man in civilian clothing allegedly arrived at the scene in her private vehicle, according to Western Cape Police spokesperson FC van Wyk.

She was apparently dressed in her police uniform at the time.

“She then interfered in the arrest of the suspect and demanded that the members release the suspect. When the members refused, she then pulled the suspect free from them and she instructed the suspect to run away,” Van Wyk said.

Police managed to recover the firearm, which was reported stolen in Manenberg last month.