Cops tricked into escorting fake UN ambassador to polling stations during 2021 elections

The Pretoria Magistrate’s Court has postponed the case against Nhlanhla Sizani to 23 January for him to get legal representation.

According to Colonel Katlego Mogale, 24-year-old Sizani appeared in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court on 12 December 2023 on charges of fraud, alternative forgery and uttering after he was issued with a summons.

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During the 2021 local government elections, Sizani allegedly submitted a fraudulent letter with the United Nations (UN) insignia requesting a South African Police Service (SAPS) escort to polling stations for the duration of the elections.

Sizani allegedly misrepresented himself as an UN ambassador/diplomat and was escorted by the SAPS Diplomatic Police Unit to various polling stations as an observer.

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“Through an investigation by the Hawks’ Crime Against the State within Serious Organised Crime Investigation, the UN confirmed that Sizani was not an ambassador/diplomat (observer) and the request for escort was not from them. SAPS suffered actual financial loss as a result of the misrepresentation,” said Mogale.

The case was postponed to 23 January 2024 for the accused to obtain legal representation.

This comes amid a scandal involving economist and former Remgro director Thabi Leoka, who has been accused of misrepresenting her qualifications.

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This after Business Day on Tuesday alleged that Leoka, who serves on several boards of companies including Anglo American Platinum does not hold a PhD in Economics from the London School of Economics (LSE).

Leoka has insisted she holds a PhD from the LSE and that she undertook the programme under a different name.

“I do hold a PHD in Economics from the university. I did economic history and economics,” she said.

“They didn’t use my full name, without using the right names, the school wouldn’t verify or confirm a name that is incomplete or not on their system. I changed my name with Home Affairs.”

READ MORE: ‘I did not misrepresent my qualifications,’ says former Remgro director Thabi Leoka