Update: 8 traffic officials, 1 driving school owner arrested in Mpumalanga

A blue Monday unfolded for eight traffic officials and the owner of a driving school in the Lowveld this morning when they were arrested for fraud.

The arrests were the result of a two-year, prosecution-led operation involving the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI) Mpumalanga, the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) and Crime Intelligence.

DPCI Mpumalanga’s spokesperson Captain Dineo Sekgotodi says police received information that driving and learner licences were being fraudulently issued across the region.

She says in some cases, driving licences were being issued without the applicants being tested. In other cases, learner’s licence tests were written and the licences were issued without the written tests being submitted to the licensing department.

In addition, several motor vehicles were licensed without being put through a roadworthy test, says Sekgotodi.

She says the perpetrators of these crimes also failed to pay licensing fees over to the relevant municipalities, thereby defrauding them of an undisclosed amount of money.

She says their actions also contributed to the high number of accidents and deaths on the roads.

All suspects were charged with fraud and corruption and are expected to make their first court appearance today.

The RTMC’s spokesperson, Simon Zwane, says the operation targeted not only corrupt licence examiners who fraudulently issued driving and vehicle licences, but also driving school operators suspected of facilitating interactions between the applicants and the examiners.

“Nine suspects were identified and warrants of arrest were issued. Eight of these are examiners in Sabie, Graskop and Lydenburg, and one owns a driving school in Sabie. This morning, we arrested four examiners, two in Sabie and two in Graskop, as well as the driving school owner… We also arrested four traffic officers who had accepted bribes from motorists in the Verena area,” says Zwane.

It is understood that more driving school owners and other officials might be involved, and Zwane says he expects more suspects to be identified and arrested soon.