For R250 000, a man claiming to be from the National Prosecuting Authority told convicted murderer Oscar Pistorius he could make his case disappear.
|||Pretoria - FOR R250 000, a man claiming to be from the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) told convicted murderer Oscar Pistorius he could make his case disappear.
But the impostor did not get away with it and was arrested by the Hawks in Pretoria on Friday near the High Court.
Hawks spokesperson Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi said the man was arrested for soliciting R250 000 from Pistorius.
“He allegedly masqueraded as an official from the NPA and demanded R250 000 from Pistorius, promising him that he would ensure that his murder case was squashed,” Mulaudzi said.
Pistorius contacted the Hawks on Thursday evening with information on the man. The directorate for special investigations acted immediately to orchestrate a trap for the alleged con artist.
The 33-year-old South African citizen fell victim to a sting operation set up by the Hawks and was arrested.
Mulaudzi said that the man acted alone and would face a charge of fraud, with the possibility of further charges being added.
The man was arrested immediately after accepting a R40 000 deposit for his services. Mulaudzi could not be drawn into revealing where the R40 000 came from and would only say it was part of operational matters.
He said the man was still being profiled by the Hawks and was unsure if he had faced similar charges before.
“He will appear at the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in Pretoria on Tuesday,” Mulaudzi said. The man’s identity cannot be revealed until he has pleaded in court.
Anneliese Burgess, spokeswoman for the Pistorius family, said: “We can confirm that Oscar was approached by an individual masquerading as an NPA official.
“However, he informed the Hawks who then executed a sting operation and arrested the individual. We wish to commend the Hawks for the swift and efficient handling of the matter.”
Pistorius will be back in the high court on April 18 to be sentenced for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp.
He is facing a possible 15 years in prison for the 2013 Valentine’s Day murder at his posh Pretoria east home.
Judge Thokozile Masipa initially found him guilty of culpable homicide and sentenced him to five year. The sentence was changed to murder by the Supreme Court of Appeal, after which the Constitutional Court turned down his appeal.
Pistorius spent almost a year in the Kgosi Mampuru II Correctional Centre before being released to serve the remainder of his earlier sentence under house arrest.
Pretoria News Weekend