Illegal car licencing operation busted in Mpumalanga – R60 million lost

The Road Traffic Management Corporation’s (RTMC) National Traffic Anti-Corruption Unit in partnership with the Hawks special crime unit has busted a multi-million rand fraudulent car licencing operation in Mpumalanga.

The operation included five provincial administrators as well as a Mbombela municipal clerk, who are alleged to have “fraudulently redetermined the classification of hundreds of vehicles to avoid payment of licensing fees and penalties,” said the RTMC.

This allowed owners of certain vehicles to miss fines and pay less annual licencing fees as, for example, their mid-size truck has now been classified as a small hatchback on the country’s licencing system, and the owner therefore only has to pay the licencing fees that a hatchback would attract.

In Mpumalanga, it costs R2,076 per year to renew a licence for a vehicle not exceeding 3,500kg, however, it’s a much lower R456 per year for a vehicle not exceeding 1,250kg, according to Foresight Publications.

This means the owners who participated in the illegal activities stood a chance to save thousands of rands per year on licencing fees, undoubtedly an attractive proposition for the cash-strapped majority of South Africa.

R60 million in revenue

The RTMC’s extensive investigations determined that over the time in which these fraudulent operations took place, the province of Mpumalanga has lost close to R60 million in revenue.

“The alleged crimes were committed between 2018 and 2019 and it is believed that they involved collusion with many other officials from registering authorities in the province,” said the organisation.

“[The defendants] are expected to be charged with 603 counts of fraud, corruption, and money laundering when they appear in the Mbombela Specialised Commercial Crimes Court later today.”

The RTMC urges members of the public to report all suspicions of malfeasances, bribery, fraud, and corruption by sending a WhatsApp message to 083 293 7989 or sending an email to [email protected].