Nelspruit (Mbombela) – The 19 suspected illegal immigrants found by South African authorities crammed in a three-bedroomed house with no furniture inside will appear in court on Wednesday.
The arrested suspects include 14 Bangladeshis and five Pakistanis.
Narrating how the group was busted, Captain Dineo Lucy Sekgotodi said on Monday, (27 February 2023), a Mpumalanga multidisciplinary team acted on a tip-off about suspected illegal immigrants who were crammed in a house in KaMagugu.
The team comprised the Nelspruit-based Hawks’ Serious Organised Crime Investigation team, Crime Intelligence Nelspruit, Provincial Detectives, Nelspruit Visible Policing team, and the Local Criminal Record Centre.
“On arrival at the address, the gate was locked and the team managed to gain entry into the property,” said Captain Sekgotodi.
“They found 19 males packed into a three-bedroomed house without furniture.”
Police recovered 18 passports, 27 cellphones, chargers, and cables which were packaged together and kept by the caretaker.
Department of Home Affairs officials were called in to assist with verifying the status of the foreign nationals.
Through interpreters, home affairs officials established that the suspects, who could not communicate in English, had passports that had no entry stamps into South Africa.
“The 19 suspects aged between 23 and 40 were arrested and charged for contravention of the Immigration Act,” said Captain Sekgotodi.
The caretaker was charged with “harbouring illegal immigrants”.
The suspects will appear before the Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday, 01 March 2023.
Provincial Head of the Hawks, Major General Nico Gerber applauded the excellent work executed by Mpumalanga multidisciplinary.
Major General Gerber vowed that the team will continue to fight crime with the assistance of the community members who persistently provide valuable information.
