4 in court for licence scam

Four vehicle examiners were each granted R2 000 bail by the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court yesterday for allegedly issuing fraudulent roadworthy certificates using the ID documents of deceased people.

The scam, uncovered by the Road Traffic Management Corporation, the police’s organised crime unit and Gauteng traffic police last Friday, took place at Green Peace roadworthy testing station in Hammanskraal, north of Pretoria.

“The scam involved the alleged issuing of fraudulent roadworthy certificates using the identity documents of dead people. It is alleged that the vehicles for which roadworthy certificates were issued were never taken to the station for physical testing and examination,” said RTMC spokesperson Simon Zwane.

Scores of documents were seized at the station while two examiners, Sarah Molatedi and Eva Tladi, were arrested at the scene on suspicion of involvement in the scam and spent the Christmas weekend behind bars.

Two other examiners, Elijah Moroke and Thomas Ramadula, who were not at work at the time of the arrests, handed themselves in at the Pretoria central police station yesterday shortly before their joint court appearance.

The four are facing 121 counts of fraud or fraudulent transactions of roadworthy certificates which were issued between March 2016 and May 2017.

Last week, four others were arrested at Clayville private roadworthy testing centre near Tembisa. One of the four, Pappie Molatedi, is the husband of the Green Peace suspect, Sarah Molatedi. Pappie, Daniel Mosaka, Sifiso Vilane and Makungu Mkhatswa face 551 counts of fraud and corruption for allegedly using ID documents of a 64-year-old bedridden man to process roadworthy certificates for hundreds of vehicles.

“This brings the number of suspects arrested in connection with fraud and corruption since the start of the festive season to 28. “Twenty suspects, including traffic officers, driving licence examiners and private citizens, were arrested in Limpopo two weeks ago,” Zwane said.

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