Man nabbed for trying to dupe Hawks with ’court order endorsed by president’

Published Sep 10, 2020

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Cape Town - The Hawks have arrested a 33-year-old Mpumalanga man who claimed he had a High Court order endorsed by President Cyril Ramaphosa which permitted him to instruct investigators to release his impounded vehicle.

The man reportedly made numerous telephone calls and sent emails to various members of the Hawks in a bid to have the vehicle released. The crack crime-fighting unit's attempts to verify the authenticity of the "court order" revealed the ruse and they set up a sting operation.

The suspect was contacted and told to collect the vehicle from the impound lot but was arrested on arrival.

The man, who isn't the owner of the vehicle in question, is expected to appear at the eMalahleni Magistrate's Court on Friday on charges of fraud, forgery and uttering.

The vehicle allegedly belongs to 26-year-old Sambulo Bruce Tshabalala, and was seized during his arrest on fraud charges in September last year.

"Tshabalala, also who goes by the name Mshengu, is currently on the run after he was released on R500 000 bail by the Middelburg Magistrate Court and has since absconded from attending court proceedings," said Hawks spokesperson Captain Dineo Sekgotodi.

Two warrants of arrests have been issued against Tshabalala, she said.

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HawksCrime and courts