Three officials appeared at the Ficksburg Magistrate’s Court on 27 March 2023 where they were charged with corruption and extortion. Two of the accused were police officials, Tsoloane Matthew’s Tsoloane (36) and Tsediso Lawrence Matsaneng (36). The third accused was Home Affairs Immigration officer Emmanuel Sefobi (45).
The incident allegedly occurred at the Ficksburg border gate where Sefobi wrongfully confiscated the complainant’s passport, claiming that it was invalid. A police official with Sefobi informed the complainant that he could assist him in retrieving the passport, but at a price of R2500. The matter was subsequently brought to the attention of the Hawks’ Serious Corruption Investigation team based in Bloemfontein, and an investigation was conducted.
After complying with the demands of the accused, the three shared the money amongst themselves and were arrested on Saturday, 25 March 2023 in Ficksburg. Of the R2500, only R600 was recovered in possession of one of the three accused.
Tsoloane, Matsaneng and Sebofi were each released on bail of R2000 and the matter was remanded to 26 April 2023 for further investigation. The Hawks team is confident that the investigation will reveal further evidence and that the three accused will be held accountable for their actions.
This article was written by Jurno.
Tags: Ficksburg