A licence fraud syndicate operating at the Khayelitsha Driving Licence Testing Centre was nabbed on Wednesday after the Hawks swooped on them as they arrived at work.
Hawks spokesman, Captain Philani Nkwalase, says shortly after 7am officers arrested six female examiners and a male security guard who had allegedly been selling learners’ and drivers’ licences for more than three years.
He says the information about the syndicate came to light through a separate investigation and on 1 November the team first arrested admin clerk Clive Vernon Scheepers, 42.
“He appeared in the Bellville Magistrate's Court the next day and was granted bail. Yesterday (Wednesday) we arrested seven people involved in the syndicate who sold licences to applicants and charged them between R850 and R2 000.
“Basically when you apply for your learners they guarantee you will pass and when you do your driver’s test you also pass as they just overlook any major faults or blunders you make on the road,” Nkwalase explains.
The seven staff members, aged between 34 and 44, are to appear in the Bellville Magistrate's Court on Thursday on corruption charges.
Nkwalase says the applicants who paid for their licences will face fraud and corruption charges and their licences will be revoked.
Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, JP Smith, says the staffers will also face disciplinary action by the City of Cape Town.
“The staff members will be served with pre-suspension notices once they have appeared in court.
“We have a zero-tolerance approach to staff misconduct and thank the Hawks for helping the City to ensure we run a clean administration.”