An elite unit of South Africa's police has raided the Johannesburg home of the speaker of parliament, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, over corruption allegations.
"The Speaker steadfastly upholds her strong conviction of innocence," said a statement from parliament.
The police unit was acting on behalf of state prosecutors who have been carrying out an investigation.
The statement from parliament said that the police "conducted a search and seizure procedure" at Ms Mapisa-Nqakula's residence, adding that she "welcomed the investigators into her home, co-operating fully" during the five-hour search.
The 67-year-old veteran of the anti-apartheid struggle became speaker in 2021. Before that, she served as defence minister for nine years.
During her time in that post, Ms Mapisa-Nqakula allegedly made several demands for money, amounting to $120,000 (£96,000), from the owner of a company to secure a tender to transport army equipment back to South Africa from elsewhere on the continent, the Business Day newspaper reports.
Cyril Ramaphosa became president in 2018 on a pledge to tackle corruption in the country. His predecessor, Jacob Zuma, was accused of overseeing a huge effort to divert state resources, charges he denies.
Ms Mapisa-Nqakula herself believes that "corruption poses a significant threat to the principles of democracy and good governance", parliament said.
"Therefore, she is profoundly disturbed by such allegations."
In a brief statement, the National Prosecuting Authority confirmed the search operation but gave no other details and did not say when or whether any charges would be brought.