The Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) has started crushing 520 vehicles that were illegally imported into the country and fraudulently registered for local use.
The imported vehicles were meant to only transit through South Africa from Japan to other African markets.
Vehicles ? illegally purchased from the syndicate were seized from member’s of the public and destroyed. pic.twitter.com/cb06qBnkcF
— Road Traffic Management Corporation (@TrafficRTMC) March 29, 2022
Seventeen people, including police officers and transport officials, were arrested in 2019. They were linked to the syndicate that fraudulently registered the vehicles on the National Traffic Information System (eNatis).
The case is still ongoing and the accused face numerous charges including money laundering, corruption, contravention of the customs and excise act and the national road traffic act.
RTMC spokesperson Simon Zwane says the process to register the cars locally was facilitated through the Komga Registering Authority, with police officers issuing fraudulent clearance documents.
The cars were registered on the eNatis system by three officials at the Eastern Cape helpdesk.
Zwane says the destruction of the first batch of 91 vehicles started in Makhanda this week.
