Durban - A Home Affairs official who allegedly issued a fraudulent passport to a Bangladeshi national who has become popularly known as, ‘Lebogang from Bangladesh’, was arrested on Monday.
South Africans were taken aback last month when a man from Bangladesh tried to leave the country using a passport with his picture, and the name Lebogang Ndlovu.
Fahim Kazi’s name went viral as “Lebogang from Bangladesh” when he was arrested on May 12, 2022.
Spokesperson for the Minister of Home Affairs, Siya Qoza, said the female Home Affairs official who allegedly fraudulently issued the passport is based at the Benoni office.
Qoza said the official was caught during a multi-disciplinary operation by the Department of Home Affairs Counter Corruption Branch together with the Hawks and other law enforcement agencies.
“She is scheduled to appear in court tomorrow[Tuesday] at the Benoni Magistrate Court for a bail hearing,” he said.
The official is on suspension and her disciplinary hearing is scheduled to take place this week, he said.
“If she is denied bail, the Home Affairs Department will arrange with the Department of Correctional Services for the hearing to be held at their premises.
He said at the time of Kazi’s arrest, Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said that the clampdown on the use of fraudulent South African documents was bearing fruit.
Motsoaledi said this was based on the fact that the department knew which corrupt official issued the fraudulent passport as she had been on the radar of the counter corruption branch.
The Minister also promised the country that the official would be arrested and face the full might of the law.
“We are determined to root out corruption in all its forms in Home Affairs. We will stamp out the use of fraudulent documents by people who do not deserve them. We will continue to arrest citizens and non-nationals who engage in the production of fraudulent documents,” said Motsoaledi.
Motsoaledi urged South Africans to stop selling their identities to foreign nationals.
“If you sell identity, two things will happen. Firstly, we will arrest you. Secondly, you will not be able to access services in the country,” he said.