The Office of the Chief Justice (OCJ) has warned members of the public to be cautious about a person impersonating retired Constitutional Court Justice Chris Jafta.
This came after Justice Jafta approached the Office of the Chief Justice to warn it that there were people who were impersonating him.
The Office has also warned that impersonating a judicial officer is a crime according to the law.
The OCJ said Justice Jafta has approached it to report that an individual was impersonating him by allegedly contacting individuals using the name of the retired Justice. The OCJ and Justice Jafta said the motives of the impersonator were not yet clear.
“The public is warned not to fall prey to this impersonator and needs to be aware that impersonating a Judicial Officer is a criminal offence.
“Members of the public and media are requested to contact the OCJ to verify the authenticity of any communication, directive, article, or social media post that purports to be that of a judge,” said the OCJ.
Justice Jafta retired two years ago after serving the Constitutional Court for 12 years. He had risen through the system, having first started as a court interpreter in 1983 before obtaining his B Juris and LLB degrees from the University of Transkei (now Walter Sisulu University) in 1983 and 1987, respectively.
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