Picture: Facebook/KZN Department of Transport
Over 30 suspects from a licence centre in KwaZulu-Natal appeared at the Richards Bay Magistrate Court on Wednesday for their involvement in fraudulently issuing driving licences for R2 500.
The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport‘s traffic and transport inspection unit with the Hawks initially arrested nine people from the Melmoth Driving Licence Centre under Mthonjaneni Local Municipality —two examiners and ten licence applicants who benefited. However, the number increased to 33.
In court on Wednesday morning, accused number 32 missed the court appearance because he was involved in a road accident while driving with a fake driver’s licence he obtained after writing a fake test.
Accused number 16 also missed court, but no explanation was provided for his absence. As a result, a warrant for his arrest has been issued.
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According to the department, the state also temporarily forfeited accused number 32’s bail and issued an arrest warrant for him.
The warrant was, however, suspended until the suspect’s next court appearance on 26 November. If accused number 32 fails to appear in court with his co-accused, he will go straight to jail.
Meanwhile, the department has revoked all the learners’ licences issued by those arrested.
“This is a clear indication of our determination to suffocate this criminal syndicate, which includes examiners, driving school owners, and applicants,” said Siboniso Duma, member of the executive council for Transport and Human Settlements on Tuesday.
“Our message is that fake drivers who underwent fake driving tests will be removed from our roads, arrested, and locked up in jail.”
The department added on Wednesday that its team and the Hawk’s work involving investigations and analysis of evidence led to more suspects.
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According to the department, 87 people have been rounded up and brought to court to date.
“Our worry is that courts are becoming too small. We are sending out a strong message that the culture of impunity and perception of a relatively easy life through fraud and corruption is the thing of the past,” Duma added.
This week, law enforcement has been clamping down hard on fraud and corruption at licencing centres.
On Monday, 14 suspects, including traffic officers and a driving school operator, were arrested for irregularly issuing driver’s licences and solicitation gratification in Mpumalanga.
According to the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC), the investigations started in 2021, where it is alleged that driving school owners in Sabie colluded with departmental officials in issuing learners’ licences and drivers’ licences to applicants without being tested after paying an exorbitant amount of cash.
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The next day, 13 more Mpumalanga traffic officers were arrested in different towns in Mpumalanga in a clean-up anti-corruption operation. The suspects were nabbed in Nelspruit, Kabokweni, KwaNyamazane, Hazyview, Barberton, White River, and Calcutta, just outside of Mbombela.
This brings the total number of arrested Mpumalanga officials to 39.
RTMC CEO Advocate Makhosini Msibi welcomed the arrests and said they would send a message that corruption within traffic law enforcement will not be tolerated.
“Corrupt officials have for a long time operated with impunity and turned the noble duty of enforcing the law into a self-enrichment scheme. This must come to an end. South Africa deserves ethical officers who conduct themselves with discipline and integrity,” he said.
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