Two suspects were arrested by the JMPD on charges of human trafficking. Photo: @JoburgMPD / Twitter
JMPD arrests two suspects on human trafficking charges in Joburg CBD
After being questioned a woman told JMPD officers she received R3.5k to bring the foreign nationals to SA for a better life.
Two suspects were arrested by the JMPD on charges of human trafficking. Photo: @JoburgMPD / Twitter
Two suspects were arrested by the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) for human trafficking. The male and female suspects were arrested in the Johannesburg CBD on 15 June.
How did the arrests happen?
While conducting patrols along Wanderers and Noord Street, operations officers stopped an overloaded silver Toyota Quantum minibus taxi with Mozambican number plates.
Officers searched the vehicle and found that all the passengers within the vehicle were undocumented foreign nationals. Officers attempted to question the passengers and a lady in the vehicle spoke on their behalf so they would not be arrested.
Why were they coming into SA?
The lady informed the officers that each passenger paid her R3 500 to come to South Africa for a “better life and to get a job”. The man driving the minibus taxi was paid R1 000 per person in the vehicle.
The woman alluded that they transport people from Malawi crossing the Mozambique border into Mzansi.
Spokesperson for the JMPD Xolani Fihla said the driver and the woman were arrested and detained at the Johannesburg Central South African Police Service (SAPS) station.
“Immigration officials were contacted for the processing of the 20 passengers who came into the borders of South Africa illegally,”
said Fihla.
Motsoaledi slams locals selling their identities to undocumented foreign nationals
In other news about foreign nationals, it was previously reported that Minister of Home Affairs Aaron Motsoaledi has warned South Africans AGAINST selling their identities. Motsoaledi made special mention of the selling of identities to undocumented foreign nationals.
On Wednesday, 8 June, Motsoaledi told Parliament that South African citizens who sell their identities lose their status in the country to be replaced by foreigners. Motsoaledi confirmed the suspension of four home affairs officials who worked at the Maponya Mall in Soweto.
This followed news of officials colluding with undocumented foreigners for them to fraudulently obtain South African citizenship. The aforementioned officials were linked to the so-called ‘Pakistani passport kingpin’. The kingpin was arrested in Krugersdorp in March this year. Read the full story here.
