NATIONAL NEWS - Six soldiers will appear in the Musina Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, June 23.
The six, between the age of 30 and 51, were arrested on Monday (June 21) by members of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation in collaboration with Crime Intelligence Unit, National Intervention Unit and the South African National Defence Force.
A statement by Hawks spokesperson Capt Matimba Maluleke said the soldiers were deployed at the Beitbridge Border Post.
“They were deployed to defend and protect the territorial integrity of the Republic of South Africa between 2017 and 2019. Instead of carrying out their constitutional mandate of ensuring national security at the borders, they allegedly connived with vehicle smuggling syndicates to smuggle stolen vehicles through the Limpopo River in exchange for money,” he explained.
Maluleke said it is believed that the soldiers would demand R15 000 per vehicle.
“The money would then be divided among themselves. This endangers the majority of their honest colleagues. A project-driven investigation dubbed ‘Night Vigil’ was instituted to probe deeper into the matter,” he added.
Maluleke said the soldiers were eventually arrested in the North West, the Northern Cape and the Free State.
The Hawks’ national head, Lt Gen Godfrey Lebeya, hailed the collaborative efforts by the integrated team.
“We certainly hope that our joint team efforts will inspire confidence in the entire civil servant and the South African community at large. Those who are entrusted with responsibility to protect and serve must never be tempted by dirty money from organised criminal groups, otherwise lessons will be learnt the hard way,” concluded Lebeya.
