A Zimbabwean national has been sentenced to six years by the Musina Magistrate’s Court for operating a bogus Home Affairs office at the Beitbridge port of entry in the Limpopo town of Musina, on the border with Zimbabwe.
In a statement, the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) welcomed the sentencing of 29-year-old Duncan Danda who had been arrested by the Hawks’ Organised Crime Unit on January 4 this year after receiving a tip-off about his illicit business.
Hawks spokesperson, Captain Matimba Maluleke, said: “Upon his arrest, he was found in possession of Home Affairs immigration stamps, an undisclosed amount of US dollars in cash which was believed to have been paid to him by foreign nationals in return of his dubious services.”
Danda was convicted on one count of Contravention of the Immigration Act for which he received a six-year prison sentence which was suspended for five years.
On a second count of Contravention of the Immigration Act, he was fined R10 000 or one year imprisonment.
“We believe that this sentence will serve as a deterrent to people like Danda who do not respect the laws of the country,” Maluleke added.