Suspected document fraudster arrested in Benoni
%%excerpt%% The suspect was also involved in producing a wider range of fake documents, including smart ID cards.
A second document fraud bust in less than a week has seen the arrest of a 38-year-old foreign national in Benoni.
This is after EMPD officers uncovered an alleged operation involving the production and sale of fraudulent official documents, including electricity receipts, identity documents and work permits.
The latest arrest in Benoni follows a similar case in Boksburg last week, where a 62-year-old man was detained with a large number of suspected fake documents, raising concerns about repeated incidents of document fraud across the two areas.
According to EMPD spokesperson Chief Superintendent Kelebogile Thepa, the Benoni breakthrough came after information from the Ekurhuleni Human Settlements Department flagged fraudulent electricity receipts circulating in the Chief Albert Luthuli informal settlement in Cloverdene.
Officers traced the source of the documents to an internet café on Bedford Avenue, where the suspect was located and allegedly admitted to printing and selling the fraudulent receipts for R250 each.
Further investigations reportedly revealed that the suspect was also involved in producing a wider range of fake documents, including smart ID cards, appointment letters, work permits, traffic registers and foreign driver’s licences.
Police confiscated several fraudulent documents and equipment believed to have been used in the illegal operation.
The suspect was arrested and detained at Benoni Police Station on charges of fraud and contravention of the Immigration Act. He is expected to appear in the Benoni Magistrate’s Court soon.
The earlier Boksburg case, handled by the Boksburg SAPS, involved a 62-year-old suspect who was allegedly found in possession of counterfeit documents, including vehicle registration papers, bank statements, doctor’s notes, and compliance certificates.
Police investigations into both cases are continuing, with authorities not ruling out further arrests.
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