Police carried out co-ordinated raids in Pretoria and Cape Town early yesterday on properties linked to a man suspected of compiling a dossier containing allegations of a plot to oust or kill President Thabo Mbeki.

Five raids were made - on the home of Bheki Jacobs, also known as Uranin Solomon, on a Pretoria hotel where he stayed this week, on the home of an Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) staffer and two others.

A warrant issued by the Cape Town Magistrate's Court on Friday said police had reasonable suspicion that Jacobs may be linked to a case of "conspiracy to commit murder" and of crimen injuria.

Police spokesman Director Phuti Setati said yesterday that a number of "operations" were carried out at various places. He said police could not comment further nor would he confirm whether Jacobs was being investigated with regards to the dossier.

He would also not say w ho the complainants or the victims of the alleged crimen injuria and conspiracy to commit murder charges were.

Jacobs told the Sunday Times that he was unaware of any investigation into him or any of his business dealings, but said he feared it was "quite serious" in the light of the raids.

He said he arrived in Cape Town after a trip to Gauteng and discovered that his office, his family home and that of a friend had been raided. He denied authoring the dossier.

The document, which contains a variety of unsubstantiated claims, also alleges that the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) "is interfering" with the activities of the IEC ahead of the country's general elections next year.

NIA spokesman Lorna Daniels said the organisation had no comment.

With acknowledgements to Jessica Bezuidenhout, Andre Jurgens and the Sunday Times.